Federal prosecutors say Reda Mazen Rida Sabassi used online fundraisers and a sham charity to collect hundreds of thousands of dollars and funnel some of that money to Hamas while diverting other funds for personal use.
The Justice Department unsealed a five-count complaint charging Reda Mazen Rida Sabassi, 38, of San Diego, with terrorism, sanctions evasion, wire fraud, money laundering, and false statement offenses tied to alleged efforts to divert charitable campaigns to Hamas and to enrich himself. Authorities say the scheme used social media, crowdfunding platforms, and a putative charity called Ikram — The Arab Charity Foundation Inc. to solicit donations. The complaint outlines a pattern of online fundraising and transfers that drew the attention of federal investigators.
Sabassi was arrested in San Diego and presented before U.S. Magistrate Judge Steve B. Chu in the Southern District of California. Prosecutors allege he raised about $600,000 through these campaigns and sent approximately $116,000 to a member of Hamas. The complaint also claims he attempted to convert roughly $382,000 of the cash raised into cryptocurrency to transmit to Hamas through an organization identified as Gaza Now.
Hamas, formally known as Harakat al-Muqawamah al-Islamiyya, was founded in 1987 and has been designated a foreign terrorist organization by the United States since 1997. The group’s stated aim has been to create an Islamic Palestinian state throughout Israel by eliminating the State of Israel through violent holy war, or jihad, and it has a long record of attacks that have targeted civilians. On Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas carried out a large-scale terrorist assault that prosecutors describe as involving more than 2,000 armed fighters, the massacres of over a thousand people, and the kidnappings of more than 200 others.
“As alleged in the complaint, the defendant exploited the barbaric acts of terror perpetrated on October 7, 2023, to attract donors to his fraudulent ‘humanitarian’ causes,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg. “He allegedly raised hundreds of thousands of dollars through this scheme, which he then funneled to Hamas to help finance that group’s terror and violence and to line his own pockets. As demonstrated by today’s charges, NSD will investigate and prosecute those who fund terrorism.”
“From within the United States, Reda Sabassi is alleged to have solicited and diverted funds to the known foreign terrorist organization, Hamas, which committed the brutal October 7, 2023, massacre,” said U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton for the Southern District of New York. “Hamas promotes attacks against the U.S. and has murdered dozens of Americans through acts of terror. Our arrest of Reda Sabassi demonstrates our whole-of-government commitment to prosecute those who provide financial support to a malign terrorist regime that hates America.”
Investigators say Sabassi publicly supported Hamas on social platforms, posting an hour-long propaganda video of the October 7 attacks to at least two accounts months after the massacre and again on the two-year anniversary. He allegedly presented fundraisers as humanitarian relief efforts while directing proceeds to Hamas operatives and co-conspirators. The complaint includes statements that Sabassi and a co-conspirator discussed naming a fundraiser after Hamas’s al-Qassam Brigades before settling on the Ikram name.
“The defendant allegedly claimed to be raising money for charity but was actually funding the terrorist organization Hamas and also lining his own pockets,” said Assistant Director Donald Holstead of the FBI’s Counterterrorism Division. “The FBI will use all our authorities to put a stop to those who seek to support the violent actions carried out by organizations like Hamas. Today’s announcement should serve as a stark reminder that the FBI and our partners on the Joint Terrorism Task Forces will remain vigilant in our effort to prevent terrorism as well as hold terrorists, and those who provide support to terrorist organizations, accountable for their actions.”
Federal officials say that since at least 2022 Sabassi solicited donations from around the world, including within the United States and New York, and routed funds through online platforms and Ikram. Prosecutors allege coordination with Gaza Now and other co-conspirators to move money to Hamas cells and operatives. Between in or about December 2023 and about February 2024, Sabassi is accused of raising approximately $600,000, sending roughly $116,000 to a Hamas member, and attempting to convert about $382,000 into cryptocurrency for transmission to Hamas.
“As alleged, Reda Sabassi raised hundreds of thousands of dollars to fund the death and tragedy Hamas seeks to carry out,” said Assistant Director in Charge James C. Barnacle Jr. of the FBI New York Field Office. “Alongside our federal partners, the FBI New York Joint Terrorism Task Force continues to aggressively eradicate fundraisers financing terrorist organizations, and hold accountable those behind the campaign.”
Sabassi faces charges that include conspiring to provide material support to Hamas (maximum penalty 20 years); conspiring to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (maximum penalty 20 years); conspiring to commit wire fraud (maximum penalty 20 years); conspiring to commit money laundering (maximum penalty 20 years); and making false statements (maximum penalty five years). The statutory maximum penalties cited are set by Congress and any sentence would be imposed by a judge.
U.S. Attorney Clayton and federal partners praised the work of the FBI’s New York Joint Terrorism Task Force, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the San Diego Joint Terrorism Task Force, and sections of the Department of Justice that assisted in the investigation. The case is being prosecuted by the Southern District of New York’s Illicit Finance & Money Laundering Unit and the National Security and International Narcotics Unit, with assistance from the Counterterrorism Section and the Counterintelligence and Export Control Section.
The charges in the complaint are accusations; all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
