An Upper East Side woman by the name of Victoria Jacobs (a.k.a. Bakhrom Talipov) has been indicted for using cryptocurrency to provide financial support to violent terrorist groups operating in Syria.
Jacobs, 43, is facing a slew of charges which include Soliciting or Providing Support for an Act of Terrorism in the First Degree and Money Laundering in Support of Terrorism in the Third Degree.
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The indictment and court documents state that from September 2018 to June 2019, Jacobs gave over $5,000 to the Malhama Tactical, a terrorist training group which supported and offered special tactical and military training to Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham, a U.S. State Department-designated foreign terrorist organization.
It’s also alleged that Jacobs engaged in money laundering by accepting cryptocurrency, Western Union, and MoneyGram transfers from supporters on behalf of Mahalma Tactical, and then transferring the funds to Bitcoin wallets controlled by the organization. She is also accused of buying Google Play gift cards for the group. The total amount allegedly laundered is $10,661.
In December 2019, Jacobs also provided a U.S. Army Improvised Munitions Handbook to an online group she believed to be associated with several terrorist organizations to facilitate their bomb-making efforts in Syria, according to the Manhattan D.A.
“This case marks the first time that terrorism financing is being prosecuted in New York State Court and is one of the rare cases worldwide where cryptocurrency is alleged to have financed terrorism,” said D.A. Bragg.
