(Tampa Bay Times) A 15-year-old boy at the center of a lawsuit against the Islamic Society of Tampa Bay was raised to be a devout Muslim, active in his congregation and devoted to his prayer sessions, his lawyers say.
So when his parents decided to move to America, and the boy found himself adjusting to a new school in Tampa, he looked to what he knew — his faith — for comfort and security.
The family attended prayer meetings and socials at the flagship mosque of the Islamic Society of Tampa Bay Area, called Sligh Masjid, 7326 E. Sligh Ave. in Tampa.
But now the family says Islamic Society leaders whom they once considered “revered fixtures in their daily lives” turned a blind eye to parents’ concerns that its former youth director was sexually assaulting teenage boys in his charge.
