WASHINGTON (TNND) — Federal authorities have seized more than half a million dollars in cryptocurrency donations intended for Hamas. The Justice Department also announced this week that it took control of website domains and communication platforms used for fundraising and recruitment.
U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro said on social media that authorities seized $560,000 in crypto donations intended for Hamas. Investigators also intercepted the names and identities of thousands of people who tried to send money to the foreign terrorist group.
Your networks are not secure, your crypto is vulnerable and we will not stop until your ability to wage war is defeated for once and for all,” Pirro said in a social media video.
Pirro said authorities disrupted Hamas’ fundraising and recruitment communications by taking over key infrastructure.
By seizing their servers and their domains we were able to directly intercept money that was going to be used by the military wing of Hamas, the Al-Qassam Brigade,” she said.
According to FBI affidavits filed in connection with the seizures, beginning in about 2019, Hamas through its military wing, the Al-Qassam Brigades, began testing virtual currency fundraising by soliciting donations on its Telegram channel before shifting to its official websites. The affidavits say the Al-Qassam Brigades boasted that bitcoin donations were untraceable and would be used for violent causes, and that the group’s websites offered instructions on how to make anonymous donations.
Justin A. Garris, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Albuquerque Field Office, told The National News Desk Wednesday that the seizure of cryptocurrency can directly affect the group’s capabilities.
Our teams ability to take that cryptocurrency, degrades their ability to resupply their military as well as recruit new members into the military. It’s a gamechanger,” Garris said.
Garris, who helped coordinate the most recent investigation, said he could not share specifics. But did say authorities have been aggressive over the last 18 months and that the probe extends beyond that time frame.
We have a lot more work we’re seeking to do to bring others to justice and we’re going to work with our internal and external partners as well as international to make sure we finish the job we started,” he said.
Garris added that investigators believe the $560,000 seizure could be only a fraction of the total funding effort. “We assess there is more money out there and we’re going to do our due diligence to seize those funds also,” he said.
Aside from this most recent investigation, U.S. authorities have also disrupted cryptocurrency fundraising involving not only Hamas, but also al-Qaida and ISIS, including a major coordinated operation in 2020.