Authorities in Taos County, New Mexico raided a derelict compound on August 3, 2018 that was allegedly being used to train 11 children to commit school shootings. The compound was being run by Siraj Wahhaj, a 39-year-old fugitive father from Atlanta, Georgia.
Wahhaj had fled Georgia in December 2017 presumably with his missing son, Abdul-Ghani Wahhaj, who was known to be severely disabled and experiencing multiple medical issues. Human remains were also found on the compound, and medical examiners are working with authorities to determine whether these were the remains of Wahhaj’s son. Four other adults were found in the compound, with one of the women reported as the biological mother of at least nine of the 11 children.
Before arriving in Taos County, Wahhaj and other children and adults were involved in an accident in Alabama months ago, where Wahhaj gave the impression the group was traveling to New Mexico for camping. Upon reaching Amalia, NM, Wahhaj obtained help from a neighbor in setting up solar panels, but kept to himself after that. Lucas Morten, Wahhaj’s brother-in-law, was one of the other adults involved, and was the individual who owned the tract of land and helped build the compound. All five adults were held at the time without bail, four of them on 11 counts each of felony child abuse.
New Mexico authorities had taken notice to the compound prior, and were surveilling it in conjunction with the FBI. While the FBI did not feel there was probable cause to search the compound yet, the Taos County sheriff’s office received a tip from a Georgia detective at a later point. The message, reading “we are starving and need food and water,” initiated Taos County Sheriff Jeff Hogrefe’s work on a search warrant and calculated approach to raid the compound.
Upon raiding the compound, authorities report Wahhaj was taken into custody without incident. Since that time, additional parties have reported on the grounds and condition of the compound, with clearer details emerging about the tunnel and chambers initially discovered.
The foster parent of one of the 11 children was the first to share she believed Wahhaj was training one or more of the children to later commit school shootings. The investigation of the compound also yielded a military-style rifle, four pistols, large quantities of ammunition, makeshift beds inside a small truck, broken glass, open trenches, and other debris.
On August 13, 2018, a Taos County judge released the five defendants on $20,000 bond each with ankle monitors, and they are required to maintain weekly contact with their attorneys until their trial concludes. According to multiple reports, state prosecutors were unable to produce “clear and convincing” evidence as to why the defendants posed a tangible threat to the community. This decision was deemed “irresponsible” by startled prosecutors, who cite the high number of firearms and alarming literature discovered in the compound, and the alleged death and remains of Wahhaj’s son.
NBC reporter Gadi Schwartz pointed out that New Mexico state law is particularly tough on prosecutors regarding their evidence, which is one of the factors that likely led to the judge’s decision. The children rescued from the compound shared with authorities that Abdul-Ghani Wahhaj had a seizure and died in the spring, which is yet to be officially confirmed.
This article will be updated as additional details emerge regarding this story.
