The Arizona chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-AZ), a chapter of the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today welcomed the sentencing of a man who phoned violent threats to a mosque in that state
Mark Martinez, 36, admitted to calling Masjid Bilal ibn Rabah in Maricopa and threatening worshipers. He was sentenced to two years of unsupervised probation, 30 hours of community service, counseling and a fine.
In September, CAIR-AZ welcomed the release of an audio recording of the racist and anti-Muslim threats targeting the mosque.
In a statement, CAIR-Arizona Executive Director Azza Abuseif said:
“We welcome this sentencing as an acknowledgment that threats and hate speech targeting places of worship have real consequences. No community should have to live in fear of practicing their faith. We hope this case serves as a reminder that Islamophobia and hate-fueled harassment will not be tolerated in Arizona or anywhere else. CAIR-Arizona will continue to work with faith and community partners to promote understanding and ensure that all Arizonans can worship freely and safely.”
She added that CAIR offers a “Best Practices for Mosque and Community Safety” booklet to help keep religious facilities safe. The advice in the booklet is applicable to all houses of worship.
Earlier this year, CAIR released its 2025 Civil Rights Report, Unconstitutional Crackdowns, which reveals that Islamophobia remains at record-high levels nationwide. CAIR said viewpoint discrimination against those speaking out against genocide and apartheid was a key factor in many cases.
Washington, D.C., based CAIR encourages community members facing bias or hate incidents to report them to law enforcement and to CAIR.
Report an incident to CAIR: https://www.cair.com/report/
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CONTACT: CAIR-Arizona Executive Director Azza Abuseif, 602-349-1573, aabuseif@cair.com; CAIR National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell, 404-285-9530, e-Mitchell@cair.com; CAIR Government Affairs Director Robert McCaw, 202-742-6448, rmccaw@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, ihooper@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Manager Ismail Allison, 202-770-6280, iallison@cair.com