PAKISTANI MAN PLEADS GUILTY IN PASSPORT CASE

A Pakistani man arrested days after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on immigration fraud charges could face up to 51 years in prison and a $1.5 million fine after pleading guilty this week, a prosecutor said.

Iftikhar Ahmed, 46, has been held in federal detention since Sept. 13. He has not been charged with any crime related to terrorism, but authorities have held him in part to explore what he knew about the Sept. 11 attacks.

He was indicted in January on six felony charges of holding fake Pakistani passports and U.S. employment documents.

Ahmed pleaded guilty to all charges Monday before Judge Terrence Boyle of U.S. District Court in Elizabeth City, said Scott Wilkinson, an assistant U.S. attorney handling the case. Boyle did not set a sentencing date.

Anti-tax groups plan rally to start meetings around state

A series of “Tar Heel Tea Parties” across the state will begin April 1 in Winston-Salem with a rally at Corpening Plaza sponsored by two conservative, anti-tax groups.

“This needs to be a statewide conversation,” said John Hood of the John Locke Foundation, which with Citizens for a Sound Economy will sponsor outdoor rallies next month in Winston-Salem, Wilmington and Raleigh, and smaller meetings in other cities.

The Corpening Plaza rally will start at 5 p.m. Meetings are also scheduled for noon April 4 at the Hook and Anchor Restaurant in Marion; 7 p.m. April 4 at the Civic Center in Wilkesboro; and noon April 12 at the Gateway Best Hotel in Hickory.

“Our members in local chapters across North Carolina are concerned about the future of our economy and the fiscal crisis we face,” said Jonathan Hill, the state director of Citizens for a Sound Economy.

Camp Lejeune Marine unit is heading for Afghanistan

CAMP LEJEUNE – A fresh unit of Marines is on its way to relieve Marines sent to Afghanistan shortly after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

The 2,000 Marines and sailors in the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit left North Carolina’s coast last month. The unit will relieve the 26th MEU that has conducted operations in Afghanistan since November. The new unit recently sailed through the Suez Canal aboard three Navy ships and is on its way to the Arabian Sea.

Officials expect the 26th MEU to return home next month.