A MUSLIM group which battled to retrieve thousands of pounds pledged for a mosque in Brentwood could soon launch a renewed bid to find a permanent home.
The modest community of Brentwood Muslims were dealt a cruel blow when the imam they thought was acting to help them build a mosque in 2005 tricked them out of more than £32,000.
Miah Rahman working with Mohammed Edoo, promised to use the thousands of pounds in donations collected from supporters to build a Muslim temple they could call their own.
The group, which had been using a local community hall near Brentwood Station, were left out of pocket after the proposals were shelved when the pair were outbid on a 1.4 acre former garden centre in Pilgrims Hatch in 2008.
From the ashes of the failed bid, the Brentwood and South Essex Cultural Association (Baseca) was born.
The group was given a glimmer of hope last month when a county court judge ordered Rahman and Edoo to repay more than £32,000 to 13 claimants after being found guilty of breach of trust.
Secretary Rajack Soobratty says the sum was a fraction of the £266,000 he says was given to the pair and urged anyone who had lost out to the East London-based cleric to lodge their own cases.
This week, the 63-year-old said Baseca, which now has more than 300 members, was ready to actively search for somewhere to call home again.
Members are currently using a modest, nondescript community hut owned by the Brentwood army cadets.
Mr Soobratty said: "Before any further fundraising takes place, we are keen that the group is seen to act transparently. We do not want to go through what we went through with Rahman again.
"We want to create a solid mechanism and an airtight system that will protect people's money as well as insulate the trustees against any problems.
"Once the structure is in place, we will approach people who are willing to help us find a place for us to set up a place of worship which could be used as a community centre as well.
"We have got a few trustees in place, but we need to properly set up an executive committee to make sure that everything is done above board.
"Once we have established that group, we can use that as a springboard to the next stage.
"We are reaching to people of all faiths and those of no faith. We want it to be somewhere for the whole community."
