Dr. Rafil Dhafir, the Manlius oncologist sent to trial for tax evasion and Medicare fraud, was found guilty Thursday on 59 of the 60 charges held against him.

Dhafir was arrested in February for violation of the former U.S. embargo against Iraq and embezzling over $500,000 from donors to his charity Help the Needy. The embargo violation also brought up questions by the U.S. government about possible terrorist activities by Dhafir.

Dhafir was also charged with taking $316,000 out of Medicare by billing the organization for false treatments of patients in his office.

Dhafir’s sentencing is scheduled for June 20. With approximately 20 years for each charge against him, he could face up to 598 years in prison and fines over $23 million.

Deveraux Cannick, one of Dhafir’s defense attorneys, said he is unsure whether or not Dhafir will push for an appeal in his case.

‘We didn’t consider (an appeal) before because we were confident the outcome would be otherwise,’ Cannick said.

Before Dhafir’s three-month trial, his defense attorneys won the right for the prosecution to not mention the doctor’s potential terrorist activities in court due to the fact that it may create a bias among jurors.

During jury selection, potential jurors had to fill out a 44-page questionnaire to determine whether or not they had any harmful biases against people of the Muslim community.

On the day of Dhafir’s arrest, former Attorney General John Ashcroft said the Dhafir case would be part of the country’s war on terrorism.

‘As President Bush leads an international coalition to end Saddam Hussein’s tyranny and support for terror, the Justice Department will see that individuals within our borders cannot undermine these efforts,’ Ashcroft said. ‘Those who covertly seek to channel money into Iraq under the guise of charitable work will be caught and prosecuted.’

Another challenge faced by both prosecutors and defense attorneys alike were the constraints of Dhafir’s religious beliefs on the judicial process. Dhafir said his Muslim faith did not allow him to be strip-searched. Because of this, his defense attorneys were not allowed to meet with him face to face before the trial.

Since Dhafir’s arrest, defense attorneys have claimed their client’s conviction was due to the fact that he was Muslim and the post-Sept. 11 tensions with the Islamic community.

‘If he were not a Muslim, he never would have been charged or brought to trial,’ Cannick said.

Published on February 10, 2005 at 12:00 pm