Mourad Topalian
Mourad Topalian (born 1943) is a prominent Armenian-American political activist, former chairman of the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA), who visited the White House several times. In 1999, Topalian was charged by the United States government with conspiracy acts, possession and storage of weapons and explosives. In 2001, he was convicted of storing stolen explosives and owning two machine guns, sentenced to 37 months in prison and three years of supervised release. Biography Topalian is known as a prominent member of the Armenian community in the USA. He was the president of the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA), which is an organization with an office in Washington that serves as an advocate on Armenian issues and is an affiliate of Armenian Revolutionary Federation. His involvement with ANCA began in 1976. Topalian was also known by the nickname "Moose." Topalian visited the White House on a number of occasions to discuss Armenian related issues. According to US News, "tall and charismatic", Topalian "was well known in the halls of Congress and had met with President Bill Clinton a half-dozen times." In 1999, Mourad Topalian moved to Cleveland and took a job as vice president of Cuyahoga Community College. The