Judge Denies Bond for Louisiana Brothers Accused of Funding Hamas After Jail Calls and Overseas Assets Raised Flight Concerns

NEW ORLEANS, LA — A federal judge has refused to release two Louisiana brothers on bond in a terrorism case that has drawn close scrutiny from prosecutors, defense lawyers and federal investigators. The decision keeps Abdel and Omar Adhami in custody as they await a February 2027 trial on charges that they provided material support to Hamas.

The ruling came after weeks of appeals, hearings and new testimony that expanded the picture of what prosecutors say they found in the brothers’ finances and jailhouse communications. U.S. District Judge Darrel Papillion said the charges are among the most serious in federal court, and he concluded that each brother could flee if released.

How the bond fight unfolded after the first release order

The dispute began when Magistrate Judge Michael B. North ruled on Oct. 14 that the brothers could be released under bond conditions. Prosecutors quickly challenged that decision, setting off a monthlong fight over whether the men should remain jailed while awaiting trial.

North’s order followed two days of testimony from FBI agents, along with statements from the brothers’ aunt and a neighbor who offered to supervise them. A U.S. Probation and Pretrial Services report had recommended release if the brothers surrendered passports and met other conditions. That recommendation was later withdrawn after probation learned about overseas financial assets it had not known existed.

North stayed the release while the government appealed, and the brothers never left custody. They appeared in court in shackles while family members watched from the gallery. Papillion later issued separate rulings denying bond for both men.

Prosecutors say jail calls exposed hidden money and foreign ties

Much of the government’s argument centered on recorded jailhouse calls. Prosecutors said the conversations showed the brothers talking about overseas bank accounts, an apartment and other assets that suggested a plan to leave the country if they were freed before trial.

In Omar Adhami’s case, Papillion said calls with his wife, Amani, pointed to bank accounts in the Middle East that investigators had not previously identified. The judge also cited an apartment in Amman, Jordan, listed under Amani’s name. According to the ruling, the apartment was secured about a month after Abdel told his brother they might be under federal investigation.

Papillion wrote that the calls showed Omar considered a Jordanian residence available to his family and was determined to keep it. That finding helped persuade the judge that no bond conditions would adequately reduce the risk of flight.

Abdel Adhami is accused of moving more than ninety thousand dollars

Abdel Adhami, 35, is accused of raising more than $90,000 for Hamas through social media, including Snapchat. Prosecutors say he communicated with Saleem Alzaq, a man living in Gaza whom Israeli intelligence officials describe as a senior Hamas figure.

Authorities allege that after the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel, Abdel and Alzaq helped move the money through a fake French charity before it was sent to fighters in Gaza. His attorneys later withdrew his bond request while the appeal was pending, and Papillion ordered him held until trial.

Defense lawyer Dylan Utley wrote in a Nov. 3 filing that his client was not conceding the earlier release order was wrong or that no set of conditions could ensure appearance and public safety. Utley did not comment further on the decision.

Omar Adhami’s defense argued the government blurred the brothers together

Omar Adhami, 33, is accused of raising about $11,000 for Hamas. His lawyer, Stephen Haedicke, argued in court that prosecutors focused too heavily on Abdel’s conduct and treated the brothers as if they were one case rather than two individual defendants.

“This should be an individualized determination, not a group determination,” Haedicke said during the Oct. 29 hearing. He also argued that the family was scrambling after the raids, with homes and vehicles seized and assets frozen.

Haedicke said Omar and Amani have a third child on the way and that the brothers did not try to flee after learning they were under FBI investigation. Papillion was not persuaded, pointing to the jail calls and foreign assets in denying Omar’s release as well.

Federal and state cases grew out of the September raids

The brothers, who were born and raised in the United States but are of Palestinian descent, were swept up in FBI raids on Sept. 15. Agents searched their homes and businesses, including J-Lo Beauty Supply in Slidell, as part of a broader terrorism-related investigation.

The federal charges remained sealed for two weeks while prosecutors developed the case against others allegedly tied to the same fundraising effort. Six days after the raids, Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill’s office also filed state Medicaid fraud charges against the brothers and several family members.

In later testimony, a Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office deputy on the FBI task force said a confidential informant reported that Abdel discussed fleeing from Mexico to Palestine if released. The deputy also testified about conversations involving cash transfers and a person described as “Emad the Barber.” The brothers’ trial is scheduled for Feb. 22, 2027.