Lawyer in Michigan mutilation case says more under scrutiny

The lawyer for a Detroit-area doctor at the centre of a female genital mutilation investigation says the case is stretching to Chicago and Los Angeles.

• Michigan imposes prison term for female genital mutilation

• Doctor, wife win release in Detroit genital mutilation case

In a court filing Tuesday, Shannon Smith says federal authorities have sent target letters to people in those cities and in Minnesota. She made the disclosure to show the complexity of the case and explain why Dr. Jumana Nagarwala should be released from jail to prepare for trial.

She didn't explain the involvement of those people.

A bond hearing is planned for Wednesday.

Nagarwala is charged with cutting at least six girls at a clinic in suburban Detroit, including two girls from Minnesota. The doctor denies any crimes and says she performed a religious custom that is sacred to her Muslim sect, the Dawoodi Bohra.