It is believed that the defendant, along with a group of anonymous conspirators, used multiple credit cards to buy large amounts of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, money that was sent abroad.
Zoobia Shahnaz, of Long Island, has been accused of providing financial support to the forces of the insurgent terrorist group Islamic State ISIS, through a scheme that, according to prosecutors, involves the purchase of electronic currency using fraudulently obtained credit cards. The charges brought by the New York East District Attorney's Office are bank fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering and three counts of money laundering.
While the indictment does not mention the use of Bitcoin, the District Attorney's Office issued a press release in which it mentions that funds sent abroad - a total of more than US $ 150,000 - were obtained, in part, from cards of credit used to buy Bitcoin and other cryptoactives - there are no specified names. Also, the authorities clarified that a portion of the funds came from a loan obtained fraudulently.
As stipulated by the Office of the Prosecutor:
Shahnaz illegally requested more than a dozen credit cards that he used to buy around USD $ 62,000 in Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. He then engaged in a series of transactions totaling more than USD $ 150,000, to ghost individuals and entities in Pakistan, China and Turkey. We believe that these movements seek to benefit ISIS. "
Court documents name four banks as providers of credit cards: American Express, Chase Bank, Discover Bank and TD Bank. After the shipments were completed, Shahnaz tried to leave for Syria from New York and was intercepted there by the police. If the defendant is found guilty of all charges, she could be sentenced to no less than 90 years in prison.