Federal agents are investigating additional targets in Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York as part of a probe into the spread of the use of female genital mutilation, according to a report Tuesday.
A grand jury investigation had originally focused on girls in Michigan and Minnesota, but new court documents obtained by The Detroit News indicate the practice may be unfolding from coast to coast.
Currently, police believe six people conspired to cut prepubescent girls as part of a religious act that Shia Muslims from India’s Dawoodi Bohra region practice.
Dr. Jumana Nagarwala of Northville, Mich., is a central figure in the federal probe. Nagarwala is alleged to have mutilated 100 girls’ genitalia at a medical clinic in Livonia, Mich, Detroit News reported. He is currently in jail and will ask to be released on bond during a court hearing next week.
Nagarwala’s lawyer has argued the doctor removed mucous membrane from the girls’ genitalia, calling it a benign religious procedure compared to mutilation.
Originally posted on The Washington Examiner:
http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/feds-expand-female-genital-mutilation-probe-to-three-major-us-cities/article/2628991