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A 27-year-old woman from New York has pleaded guilty of supporting the Islamic terror group ISIS using Bitcoin and other digital currencies. She admitted to wiring more than $150,000 to different shell entities and individuals overseas, which acted as a facade for the ISIS groups in Turkey, Pakistan, and China. The money was transferred in 2017 and involved bank fraud as well as digital currency payments.
Laundering Money Off to ISIS
The Brentwood, Long Island-based Zoobia Shahnaz admitted that she had wired over $150,000 to individuals and shell entities connected with ISIS. The scam involved bank frauds, the use of Bitcoin and several other digital currencies, according to the US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York.
In 2017, when these payments were made, she was also intercepted trying to go to Syria, where ISIS has been the most active. She was arrested last December and has been in custody since. She will face punishment of up to 20 years for providing material support to a foreign terrorist organization. Her lawyers have not commented on the situation yet.
Shahnaz’s Introduction to ISIS
According to the court documents, Shahnaz was working as a lab technician in Manhattan, making about $71,000 per year before June 2017. She traveled to Jordan in January 2016 as a volunteer with the Syrian American Medical Society. Prosecutors wrote in their court filings:
“For two weeks, she assisted in providing medical aid to Syrian refugees in Amman [Jordan] and in the Zaatari Refugee camp, where ISIS exercises significant influence.”
However, before coming in direct contact with the ISIS activities, Shahnaz was doing extensive research about joining ISIS on the internet.
In March 2017, she conducted a bank fraud scheme where she scammed Chase Bank, American Express, Discover and TD bank by obtaining six credit cards fraudulently. These six cards, with another ten cards in her name, were used to buy Bitcoin and other cryptos worth $62,703. The cryptos were then converted into US dollars and transferred to her checking account. She then went on to receive a $22,500 fraudulently obtained loan from a Manhattan bank.
The money was wired to overseas entities in a manner designed to avoid financial reporting requirements and hide the source as well as the destination of the cash. She then obtained a Pakistani passport and planned to travel to Syria after quitting her job.
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