FBI Albuquerque, federal prosecutors seize cryptocurrency allegedly meant for Hamas
FBI Albuquerque allegedly 'identified a terrorist financing network soliciting donations to the al-Qassam Brigades,' Hamas' military wing. (Photo illustration by Namthip Muanthongthae / Getty Images)
The U.S. government announced last week that two confidential informants and an FBI special agent based in New Mexico's largest city discovered and seized hundreds of thousands of dollars in virtual currency that officials say was meant for Hamas.
On March 25, a special agent with the Albuquerque field office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation asked a federal court in Washington D.C. for permission to seize the virtual currencies. U.S. Magistrate Judge Matthew J. Sharbaugh signed the application.
According to the agent's sworn statement attached to the application, in February, FBI Albuquerque 'identified a terrorist financing network soliciting donations to the al-Qassam Brigades,' Hamas' military wing. The U.S. has designated Hamas a terrorist organization.
The FBI agent wrote in the warrant application that he believes the funds are 'traceable to, and involved in, a scheme to solicit donations of virtual currency to' Hamas, and to launder those donations on the group's behalf.
The warrant and associated documents indicate they were filed in the court under seal, meaning they are not publicly available. Source NM searched online federal court records for the case number associated with the warrant but could not find anything.
But the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia attached the records to a March 27 news release in which the government said it disrupted 'an ongoing terrorist financing scheme' by seizing approximately $201,400 worth of virtual currency held in wallets and accounts intended to benefit Hamas.
It is unusual for federal prosecutors to publish an otherwise sealed search warrant before actually charging someone with a crime, two sources with knowledge of the federal criminal legal system who asked to remain anonymous told Source NM.
A case usually doesn't get opened until after someone is formally presented with the charges against them in court, the sources said.
One of the sources suggested that the reason why the DOJ is publicly talking about the case before any charges is that Ed Martin, President Donald Trump's appointed interim U.S. Attorney for the District of Washington D.C., is 'trying to make political hay out of an otherwise normal investigation, in an incredibly irregular way.'
Adam Schiff, a Democratic U.S. senator from California, on Tuesday placed a hold on Martin's permanent confirmation as D.C.'s top federal prosecutor, alleging Martin had 'abused' his role.
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia did not return an email seeking comment on the case.
The seized funds were traced from fundraising addresses allegedly controlled by Hamas that were used to launder more than $1.5 million in virtual currency since October 2024, the DOJ said.
FBI Albuquerque is investigating the case alongside the FBI Counterterrorism Division and Cyber Division, according to the news release.
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While the FBI agent's affidavit only reveals some of what the U.S. government knows about the investigation, it appears to show that the agent's involvement began when an FBI confidential informant in the U.S. on Feb. 6 alerted them to a post on the instant messenger service Telegram asking supporters to contact an email address allegedly associated with al-Qassam in order to donate. Four days later, the informant sent a message to the email address and received a response a few hours later containing instructions on how to donate, according to the translation included in the warrant.
Another informant on Feb. 17 alerted the agent to seven more places to donate virtual currency that the informant allegedly received by emailing al-Qassam.
The cryptocurrency was held on two platforms based outside of the United States, Binance and Tether, according to the warrant application. In October 2023, U.S. Sen. Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.) and U.S. Rep. French Hill (R-Ark.) wrote a letter asking the DOJ to criminally prosecute Binance and Tether.
'We urge the Department of Justice to carefully evaluate the extent to which Binance and Tether are providing material support and resources to support terrorism through violations of applicable sanctions laws and the Bank Secrecy Act,' Lummis and Hill wrote. 'To that end, we strongly support swift action by the Department of Justice against Binance and Tether to choke off sources of funding to the terrorists targeting Israel.'
Tether, at the request of federal law enforcement, on March 12 agreed to freeze about $90,000 worth of virtual currency until the FBI could serve the warrant, according to the application.
The agent wrote that Binance 'took independent action' to freeze other related accounts, and provided records to the agent about two accounts owned by Palestinians whom the agent believes are 'financiers enabling a virtual currency donation network to support Hamas.'
In announcing the seizures, FBI Albuquerque Special Agent in Charge Raul Bujanda said in the news release that 'countering terrorism remains the FBI's number one priority.'
'By successfully disrupting access to funds, we weaken their ability to function,' Bujanda said. 'This success demonstrates that financial warfare is a critical component to fight terrorism. We will continue to do everything in our power to protect the American people and pursue justice by depriving terrorist organizations of the resources they need to continue their illicit activity.'
In an emailed statement, a spokesperson for FBI Albuquerque told Source NM that the investigation is ongoing and declined to answer questions about how the case is connected to New Mexico, and whether anyone has been charged with a crime related to the seized money.
'The FBI investigates many different cases across all of our 55 field offices,' spokesperson Margot Cravens wrote. 'We pursue cases based on well-defined investigative strategies. As with all of our investigations, we adjust and refine that strategy based on the results of ongoing leads.'
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