A Central Florida mansion with a notorious past is facing the wrecking ball.
Once owned by Khalil bin Laden, brother to Al-Qaeda’s co-founder and terrorist mastermind Osama bin Laden, the Oakland mansion situated just off West Colonial Drive is now undergoing demolition.
Reported by NBC affiliate WESH, the history-laden estate was snapped up by Khalil in the 1980s.
However, Khalil’s family swiftly departed the vacation abode in the immediate wake of the 9/11 attacks, leaving the mansion to face its fate.
Residents in the neighborhood have witnessed the mansion’s transformation over the years.
“I’ve seen it be abandoned, I’ve seen it when there were people living in it, I saw it when it was a wedding venue,” one neighbor, who only shared her first name as Tara, told the outlet.
“We were on the lake today, and we saw the crane, we heard the noise and we could just tell that it was finally the day that it was getting torn down,” she added.
The most notable event occurred on Sept. 19, 2001, when Tara’s mother saw Khalil’s family being airlifted out of the mansion, bound for Saudi Arabia.
“When the bin Ladens were airlifted out of this house, that’s when she found out, so we kind of grew up knowing it,” Tara said.
Since then, the residence has passed through different hands, remaining vacant and abandoned for years.
County records obtained by WESH reveal that the property changed ownership as recently as 2021, when it was acquired by an LLC.
This LLC wasted no time in filing a notice in January to commence “improvements” to the property, signaling the beginning of the end for the infamous mansion.
By Wednesday afternoon, approximately one-fifth of the property lay in ruins, scattered with brick fragments and splintered boards. The full demolition of the site is anticipated to span several weeks.
“We’ll probably be here about 2 1/2 weeks,” Kerry Bazinet from Rock and Roll Demolition told the outlet. Their demolition efforts commenced on Tuesday afternoon, targeting several structures on the premises.
“You have a garage, then a stable and then the main residence here,” Bazinet added. Additionally, there’s a compact basement area that resembles more of a secure chamber than a typical cellar.
The principal at Cornerstone Group, the brains behind the LLC, disclosed to WESH that while formal plans for the space are yet to be submitted, the vision for the property includes a mix of commercial space, preserved lakefront acres and multi-family housing.
“I know a lot of people say it,” Tara said, “They don’t build houses like this anymore.”
Meanwhile, another home owned by another one of bin Laden’s brothers, Ibrahim bin Laden, has been unable to find a buyer after nearly three years on the market and several price cuts.
Located in Bel-Air in Los Angeles, Ibrahim, who has owned the property for nearly four decades, also abandoned the home following the 9/11 attacks.
Made up of seven bedrooms and five baths, his home occupies more than 7,100 square feet and stands on more than 2 acres of land.
