Man Charged For Wiring Money To IS Women in Syria

FAIRFAX, VA (ANI) – An Indian American man has been charged for transferring thousands of dollars to Islamic State women, hoping to smuggle them out of a Syrian refugee camp. Mohammed Azharuddin Chhipa,33, used social media to raise funds for those in the al-Hol refugee camp in Syria and voiced his support for violent jihad online, The Washington Post reported on May 5.

An FBI filing said Chippa, in 2019, began fundraising for “sisters” in the al-Hol refugee camp in Syria, which “is assessed to be a stronghold of ISIS ideology,” claiming the money was for “shelter”, the FBI said.

The FBI said that “thousands of videos, pictures, essays, books, notes, and search histories about extremist ideology, jihad, ISIS, and violent propaganda on multiple devices” turned up during a search of Chhipa’s home in 2019.

Chippa faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted for providing material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization.

According to Chippa’s financial records obtained by the federal agency from 2019 to 2022, he purchased $172,000 in virtual currency and collected $15,000 in digital funds from others. More than $18,000 “went to wallets known to be used by ISIS women located in Syria,” while the total funds Chhipa sent to smuggle IS women out of the camp could be much higher, the FBI said. Payment platform PayPal in March 2021 blocked the account through which Chippa received the funds.

Many of the women held in the refugee camp were married to IS fighters, killed or captured in their fight for control of Syrian territory against US-backed forces.