Virginia Man Receives Over 30-Year Sentence for Funding ISIS with Cryptocurrency

A Virginia man has been sentenced to more than three decades in prison for his involvement in financing the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) using cryptocurrency. Mohammed Azharuddin Chhipa was found guilty on five terrorism-related charges, including conspiracy and providing material support to a foreign terrorist organization, after prosecutors demonstrated a multi-year scheme from 2019 to 2022 that involved channeling over $185,000 to female ISIS members imprisoned in Syrian camps. These funds allegedly aided prison escapes, furthered the group’s operations, and allowed them to continue violence.