JNS
“ISIS relies on supporters, like the defendants, to sponsor its terrorist aims,” a U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of New York stated.
Abdullah At Taqi, 26, was convicted on Oct. 24 by a jury on all counts of an indictment charging him and co-defendant Mohammad Daniel Hashimi, 38, of conspiring to provide material support to ISIS and conspiring to launder money, the U.S. Department of Justice announced.
Hashimi previously pleaded guilty to all counts of the indictment as jury selection was scheduled to begin on Oct. 6.
“Taqi conspired to support the group and its atrocities by funneling cryptocurrency to ISIS fighters, hoping they would establish a stronghold in the Middle East from which the group could destabilize the entire region,” John A. Eisenberg, assistant attorney general for national security, stated.
“This conviction reflects the department’s commitment to holding accountable those who knowingly finance terrorism,” he added.
At Taqi and Hashimi, along with two others separately charged and convicted, used Bitcoin, PayPal, and GoFundMe to collectively transfer thousands of dollars to the Islamic State, which were partially disguised as charitable giving.
According to the Justice Department, At Taqi was found to have engaged in 15 Bitcoin transactions to Osama Obeida, an avowed ISIS member, for nearly a year, and Hashimi was part of a group chat of ISIS supporters in 2021, where they discussed disguising links as raising money for humanitarian purposes but would actually go toward ISIS.
At sentencing, each defendant faces a maximum penalty of 60 years in prison.
“ISIS relies on supporters, like the defendants, to sponsor its terrorist aims, which is why our office and our law enforcement partners are working tirelessly to disrupt that pipeline and prosecute those who provide material support to terrorist organizations and their evildoers,” said Joseph Nocella Jr., U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of New York.
