The Saudi Family That Vanished from Sarasota Two Weeks Before 9/11

Just two weeks before the September 11 attacks, members of a Saudi family in Sarasota, Florida abruptly vacated their home — leaving behind cars, furniture, clothing, and food — and flew back to Saudi Arabia. The story stayed buried in law enforcement files for a decade before investigative reporting dragged it into the open.

The short answer: In September 2011, reporters Anthony Summers and Dan Christensen revealed that the FBI had investigated a Saudi family — Esam Ghazzawi's daughter Anoud and her husband Abdulaziz al-Hijji — who fled their Sarasota home around August 30, 2001. FBI documents later obtained through a lawsuit said the investigation had "revealed many connections" between the family and individuals associated with the 9/11 attacks. (28Pages.org)

What happened at the Sarasota house?

The couple lived with small children at 4224 Escondito Circle, in the gated Prestancia community. According to the 2011 reporting, they left in a hurry in a white van, probably on August 30 — abandoning three recently registered vehicles including a brand-new Chrysler PT Cruiser, with mail on the table, clothes in the closets, and the pool still running. (Gawker)

What did investigators find?

The FBI interviewed neighbors, reviewed phone records, and documented connections between the family's social circle and the hijackers, who had trained at nearby Florida flight schools. Sources said hijackers — including leader Mohamed Atta — had visited the home, with gate license plates photographed on entry. An FDLE report indicated the names al-Hijji and Ghazzawi were both on the FBI watch list.

Why did this become a scandal?

Because of what happened next — or didn't. Senator Bob Graham, who co-chaired the Congressional Joint Inquiry into 9/11, said the FBI never told Congress or the 9/11 Commission about the Sarasota investigation. When the story broke in 2011, the FBI issued statements saying it had fully investigated and found no connection. But when Christensen sued under FOIA in 2012 — after the FBI first claimed no documents existed — the bureau produced 35 partially redacted pages, one of which directly contradicted its denials: the investigation had "revealed many connections" between the family and individuals associated with the terrorist attacks.

What does this prove about Saudi government involvement?

Less than partisans on either side claim. The Sarasota connection does not by itself establish that elements of the Saudi government knowingly assisted the hijackers. What it does establish — on the FBI's own paper — is that the social networks connecting Saudi nationals in the United States to the hijacking plot were more extensive than the official account initially acknowledged, and that significant information about those networks was withheld from the bodies charged with investigating 9/11. The 28 classified pages of the Joint Congressional Inquiry, finally released in 2016, documented extensive contacts between hijackers and Saudi officials without establishing definitive proof of intentional support. (Tampa Bay 28)

Frequently asked questions

Who were the Sarasota family? Abdulaziz al-Hijji and his wife Anoud, daughter of Saudi businessman Esam Ghazzawi, who owned the Prestancia home they lived in. All reporting on their alleged connections comes from law enforcement documents and investigative journalism, not from any criminal charge.

Did the FBI ever fully disclose its Sarasota files? No. A federal judge ordered the FBI to conduct deeper searches and turn over tens of thousands of pages for judicial review, and much of the material remains classified.