The Canadian Muslim community has expressed shock, and disbelief, at the news that one of their prominent teachers has been accused of sexual abuse of minors.
Bangladeshi imam Mohammed Masroor who is now facing charges of sexual offences and making death threats has been denied bail.
A Toronto court has said that the 48-year-old  father of five would remain behind bars, pending trial.
He has been in jail since his arrest on Aug10 and was charged on Aug17. Police say he has used many names and aliases since he left Bangladesh in the 1990s.
According to the police, Masroor used the name Junaid Salman in Hungary, Austria and Italy and elsewhere in Europe in the early 1990s.
He also may have travelled under the name Abdur Rahim in India, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia in the 1980s, and was also known as Abdul Karim Abdul Aziz.
The court, however, asked not to publish any details of the bail hearing.
The man faces 13 charges stemming from incidents that allegedly occurred between Nov. 1, 2008, and July 28, 2011. He came to Canada as a refugee in 2008.
Masroor is an imam at the Baitul Mukarram Islamic Society on Danforth Ave., near Danforth Rd.
Until his arrest, he led Friday prayers at the mosque and he taught the Quran daily to young boys and girls.
The father of five also taught kids privately in their homes.
Many members of the mosque have come to Masroor’s defence, praising him as a well respected member of their community.
The imam’s next court appearance will be via video on Sept 16.
Masroor worked as a travelling imam and visited numerous countries teaching children and young people Koranic studies. In their investigation, police have found  Masroor to be in possession of three passports than bear names other than his own.
A passport with the name Junaid Salman, with no birth date listed, was allegedly used in the early 1990s in Hungary, Austria and extensively in Italy, as well as other European nations.
A passport with the name Abdur Rahim, also with an unknown birth date, was used during the 1980s in India, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.
Police say Masroor has also been known as Abdul Karim Abdul Aziz, a Gulf Arabic name and there maybe victims in other countries including Sri Lanka and Singapore.
Muna Khan writing in Al Arabiya said there have been comments on various blogs which have spoken of the investigators’ “double standards” in the handling of this case because the accused in question is Muslim and authorities are acting out of political correctness.
Commentators, he said, argue that had this been a priest, all the details of the ages of his victims would have been released and he would have been labeled a pedophile, whereas Masroor is being treated with “kid gloves” so as not to appear that the Muslim community is being victimzed.
“My own disbelief is the reaction, or lack thereof, from the Muslim community and the management of the Islamic center. While Masroor is innocent until proven guilty, and not deserving of an outright condemnation until charges are proved, this was an excellent opportunity for the community to discuss sexual abuse among children and remind everyone that it adheres to a zero-tolerance policy towards it.
Instead, what we appear to be witnessing is a shoving of the issue under the carpet. This has almost become commonplace in Muslim communities, many of whom refuse to face up to ugly incidents that take place under the guise of religion or, worse, see everything as a western-manufactured conspiracy against them,” Khan wrote.