el-Sayed entered Canada in August 1998 on a forged Dutch passport and told Canadian immigration officer Paul Kyba that he had fled Hezbollah to Germany, to come to Canada to seek asylum.[1]
He settled in Edmonton, Alberta under the false surname Rahyn, and received social security and bank cards registered to his fake identity[1] before a fingerprint match determined that he was fleeing German drug trafficking and firearms charges.[2] He was arrested by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) the following year, but was released on $7,500 bail in 2002.[2]