Disciple of Your Black Muslim Bakery raises new group in Oakland
By Thomas Peele and Matt O'Brien, The Oakland Tribune | |
McClatchy-Tribune Information Services |
As a suited young man stands sentry outside the
"Now the persecution is upon the people," Dahood Bey said in a lecture posted to
Nearly seven years after the bakery collapsed following the slaying of journalist
"Look at the past," said
Public scrutiny has grown in recent months after this newspaper uncovered that BMT, the security company run from the temple, had used fake insurance documents to win contracts with two public agencies. The
Under Dahood Bey, the organization has also revived the bakery's broader business enterprises, running a religious school, restaurant and janitorial service. But an exhaustive review of records by this newspaper found none of them has proper business licenses or permits.
Violence has also resurfaced. In what police describe as a "landlord-tenant dispute" at a temple-controlled house, a BMT guard is charged with stabbing another to death in early February during an attempted eviction. Another BMT guard beat a man with a flashlight a year earlier on the first day of a lucrative
Any resurgence of the bakery will have costly consequences for
Dahood Bey did not respond to interview requests. But court documents, public records and interviews with law enforcement members and a temple insider show he has a violent past and controls many aspects of his followers' lives.
He has twice threatened to kill people, including the mother of one of his children, court records show. He also pleaded no contest to perjury for giving the
Another Black Muslim whom Dahood Bey was charged with torturing in 2009 described him in court as a "more than zealous" disciple of
But all along,
It is unclear when Dahood Bey, who was born
But Dahood Bey often uses other names. When he was tried for torture in 2010, he asked a judge to call him "Dahood Doe," saying Bey portrayed him unfairly.
DMV licenses issued to him included the names Dawud Beyahed,
The seeds of his group appear to have been planted more than a decade ago, when
The temple still bears the name of Elijah's University, though state records show the business -- officially registered to Dahood Bey's wife -- was suspended for not paying taxes. The group now advertises itself in a religious newspaper and elsewhere as
Its exterior is adorned with portraits of Nation of Islam messenger
Karl Evanzz, who wrote a biography of Muhammad, said the
"The return to the primitive teachings of the Nation of Islam is perhaps a response to worsening racial conditions in black enclaves throughout the nation," Evanzz said. "Groups espousing racial intolerance are typically a reaction to social or economic conditions, or both."
Dahood Bey's followers work at several enterprises, including BMT and the restaurant. An employee roster obtained by this newspaper shows more than 30 people, split among the businesses.
None of those people appear to have state-required security guard licenses, according to records. The restaurant, called The Fish House on its menu and
Workers are paid in cash with no taxes withheld, according to three people familiar with temple practices, but pay is often docked for missing temple meetings. Workers sometimes receive housing in lieu of money at properties the organization owns or controls.
A dispute involving a former employee living in one of them, on
Questions are now being raised about how the organization came into control of a swath of properties near the temple.
The house and temple were once owned by prominent
While documents show Reeves' signature on several property transactions with temple associates, endorsing their work,
But a handwritten note on a 2012 rental agreement for the
And in a lease for the temple property filed with the Alameda County Recorder's Office, Parker stated that Reeves wanted "Elijah's University to purchase the (temple) property so we can continue our work of education, job training and housing for minority low-income residents."
King was surprised to learn of the temple's involvement. "Cecil and I were very close," he said. "I have no knowledge that Cecil had any knowledge of them. He certainly never mentioned them to me."
Despite his violent past, questionable deals and harsh religious dogma, Dahood Bey seems intent on legitimizing his image. Late last year, he went to
Nakahara granted the request. Dahood Bey, the judge noted, appeared to be staying out of trouble.
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