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HOUSTON – For the second day in a row, federal investigators continued their search of a Tanglewood home in the 400 block of Fall River Road near Memorial Drive.
At the same time neighbors heard two explosions coming from the home. The first was around 2 p.m. and the second was around 4 p.m.
The Rosenberg family was at home on their computer when they heard the blasts.
“I think we’re all curious and obviously a little terrified,” Robin Rosenberg said. “I mean if the FBI is involved, it cannot be good.”
A spokeswoman for the agency described the material found in the home as a “potentially volatile substance,” but would not say whether it was a powder or liquid they destroyed.
A neighbor told KHOU 11 News that authorities are investigating an online threat against the government.
Agents have not confirmed that.
Over the past two days the FBI has gone through three homes all connected to Andrew Schneck and Cecily Horton, a Houston couple. One source said it is their son who is being targeted.
Records reveal he is 22 years old. No one has been arrested in connection to the raids.
Sources report the U.S. Treasury Department is investigating the fees. The department is not saying how many of the speakers may be under investigation.
Washington attorney Eric Ferrari believes the prominence of these Americans, and their advocacy of the MEK, triggered the probe.
"People were asking a lot of questions. Why are they not being investigated? How are they getting away with this?" asked Ferrari.
One American reported to be under investigation is former Democratic Party National Committee head Ed Rendell. Two other MEK supporters, former Attorney General Michael Mukasey, and former FBI Director Louis Freeh, have reportedly retained an attorney because of the investigation. Freeh says he has not been compensated for appearances on behalf of the Mujahedin.
A lawyer representing the MEK says these Americans have a constitutional First Amendment right to advocate for the group despite its listing as a foreign terrorist organization.
"Now that may be a fine line - it may even be a Byzantine line to draw. But, it is a line, and it is an important one, because it goes to the question as to whether American citizens have the right to speak their minds," said attorney Steven Schneebaum.
A critic of the MEK contends the group has evaded U.S. bans and restrictions by paying these Americans through various fronts.
"The MEK has used a number of names, or front organizations, as the conduits for financing this campaign. If you look at some of the big advertisements in the newspapers, it won't say the Mujahedin-e Khalq. It will say something like 'British scholars on behalf of Iran' or something like that," noted Georgetown University professor Paul Pillar.
A federal law enforcement search of homes in upscale Houston neighborhoods Friday was prompted by the ordering of chemicals that could be used in the manufacture of some type of gas, according to an official.
Agents wearing Hazmat-type gear raided two homes in Houston and a third home in Bryan at about 9 a.m.
The law enforcement source, who asked not to be identified, said the chemicals were not the type used in the manufacture of a traditional explosive.
The intent was "to make some sort of gas ... like tear gas or nerve gas," the source said.
The official said it was not known if any gas was ever produced or recovered.
All three homes are linked to a member of the Houston art community, Cecily E. Horton, and her husband, Andrew Schneck.