TEXAS – Six-year-old Maher Suleiman Mohammad, a boy with Down syndrome, has been accused of terrorism after a substitute teacher in Pearland, Texas, called the police to investigate him.
“She claimed he was a terrorist,” the boy’s father, Maher Suleiman, told Fox 26 Houston.
“This is so stupid, this is discrimination, actually, It’s not implied discrimination, it’s 100 percent discrimination. … The last three weeks, four weeks have been the hardest of my life. Even my wife, kids were crying…a few days ago and I told them, ‘Okay, everything is fine.’”
The father said that the young boy’s disabilities mean he cannot speak at all and he needs constant special attention.
However, the substitute teacher at his Pearland, Texas school thought she heard him say the words “Allah” and “boom” and called the police, claiming that young boy was a terrorist.
That phone call prompted a police investigation, in addition to the inspection made by the Child Protective Services.
“It’s not true, he doesn’t speak at all,” the Pearland resident said of his son, who was born with Down syndrome chromosome 21.
The Pearland Police Department has confirmed to FOX 26 News that they concluded their investigation and found no need for police involvement. Yet, the Child Protective Services department says its own investigation is still ongoing.