High school basketball coach charged in ‘child predator operation’
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LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) – The Holt High School boys’ basketball coach is on administrative leave after he was arraigned on four felonies in 54-A District Court.
Muhammad El-Amin was arraigned Friday morning and released on a personal recognizance bond. He was charged with one count of Child Sexually Abusive Material, and one count of using a computer and the internet to communicate with another to commit a crime. one count of using a computer to commit a crime and one count of accosting a child for immoral purposes.
Those felonies stem from what Lansing Police Assistant Chief Robert Backus called a “child predator operation” involving the Lansing Police Department, Eaton County Sheriff’s Department and the Michigan State Police.
“On May 2, 2024, at approximately 8:20 pm, members of the Lansing Police Department Special Operations Section, Eaton County Sheriff Office and the Michigan State Police,” Backus said in a news release Friday evening, “arrested Muhammad El-Amin, a 36-year-old male, during a child predator operation.”
The two computer charges come under different Michigan laws. The first is using a computer to commit a crime. The other is using a computer to communicate with another person to commit a crime. The charge of child sexually abusive material law can be found here. The law for accosting a child for immoral purposes is here.
6 News was unable to reach El-Amin directly. Family members did not respond to requests for comment. Former teammates and those close to the former professional basketball player reached by 6 News tonight, expressed “shock” at the charges, but declined to comment further.
El-Amin’s arrest and charges were first revealed in a letter from Holt Public Schools Superintendent David Hornak.
“At this point, we do not have any information to believe this matter involved District students or occurred on District property,” Hornak wrote in the letter.
Letter to the Learning Community 5.3.24 (1)Download
El-Amin was a high school standout as a student at Holt High School – a trend that continued into college at both Lansing Community College and Stoney Brook University in New York. Following college, El-Amin hit the pro-circuit overseas. Various European news outlets reported he played for teams in Greece, Italy, Hungary, Qatar and Israel. He returned to Lansing to play for the short-lived Lansing Pharaohs, a semi-pro team that played at the Don Johnson Fieldhouse in Lansing.
El-Amin will be back in court on May 17 for a probable cause hearing and on May 24 for a preliminary hearing.
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