Zoobia Shahnaz, 27, of Brentwood, New York, pleaded guilty on Monday committing bank fraud and laundering over $85,000 in Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies in order to support the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS).
Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers, U.S. Attorney Richard P. Donoghue for the Eastern District of New York, Assistant Director in Charge William F. Sweeney, Jr. for the FBI’s New York Field Office, and Commissioner James P. O’Neill for the NYPD announced the guilty plea.
The guilty plea was entered before U.S. District Judge Joanna Seybert.
According to court filings and facts presented at the plea hearing, between March 2017 and the date of her attempted travel to Syria on July 31, 2017, the defendant engaged in a scheme to defraud numerous financial institutions.
Specifically, Shahnaz obtained a loan for approximately $22,500 by way of materially false pretenses, representations and promises.
She also fraudulently applied for and used over a dozen credit cards, which she used to purchase approximately $62,000 in Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies online.
She then engaged in a pattern of financial activity, designed to avoid transaction reporting requirements, conceal the identity, source and destination of the illicitly obtained monies, and, ultimately, benefit ISIS – by culminating in several wire transactions totaling over $150,000 to individuals and shell entities in Pakistan, China and Turkey that were fronts for ISIS.
(Zoobia Shahnaz, was arrested in Dec 2017 for attempting to send $62,000 to ISIS through bitcoin. She is now facing up to 90 years in prison. According to business insider, “Shahnaz took out more than a dozen credit cards earlier this year and used the money she borrowed to buy cryptocurrency and sent it abroad…” Courtesy of Wochit News and YouTube. Posted in Dec 2017.)
During the time she was committing bank fraud and laundering money overseas, the defendant was accessing ISIS propaganda online, including violent jihad-related websites and message boards, and social media and messaging pages of known ISIS recruiters, facilitators and financiers.
Additionally, the defendant conducted numerous internet searches for information that would facilitate her entry into Syria, but ultimately was intercepted by the Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF) at John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) in Queens, New York, while attempting to board a flight with a multi-day layover in Istanbul, Turkey – a common point of entry for individuals travelling from Western countries to join ISIS in Syria.
As part of her plea agreement with the government, Shahnaz admitted to defrauding numerous financial institutions and laundering the stolen proceeds out of the country with the intent to support a specified unlawful activity, namely the provision of material support to ISIS, after which she attempted to leave the United States and travel to Syria.
Shannaz was arrested in December 2017 when a five-count indictment was unsealed in federal court in Central Islip, New York, charging Zoobia Shahnaz with bank fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering and three substantive counts of money laundering.
“As alleged, the defendant Zoobia Shahnaz engaged in a bank fraud scheme, purchased Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies and laundered money overseas, intending to put thousands of dollars into the coffers of terrorists,” stated Acting United States Attorney Rohde at the time of her arrest.
“The indictment reflects the resolve of this Office, together with our law enforcement partners, to investigate and prosecute anyone who would seek to support terrorists, including those who would perpetrate financial crimes to do so.”
Ms. Rohde extended her grateful appreciation to the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force comprising a large number of federal, state and local agencies from the region.
“Syria is a perilous and violent war-torn country, but the subject in this investigation was allegedly so determined to assist ISIS that she planned a covert, illegal entry into Syria,” added FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Sweeney.
“On top of which, she allegedly tried to launder virtual currency to bolster terrorists’ dwindling financial support. The FBI New York Joint Terrorism Task Force kept this woman from her dangerous and potentially deadly goal.”
“We will do all we can to stop the next person hoping to do the same. We want to thank our law enforcement partners Suffolk County Police Department, with whom we worked this case side-by-side.”
When she is sentenced, Shahnaz faces up to 20 years in prison, as well as restitution, criminal forfeiture and a fine.
The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes. Any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
