US Muslim Charity Director Charged with Funneling Money to al Qaeda

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Thursday, October 10, 2002

US Muslim Charity Director Charged with Funneling Money to al Qaeda

Enaam Arnaout, leader of a US Islamic charity, was indicted Wednesday on charges of fraudulently funneling money to al Qaeda terrorist network led by Osama bin Laden.

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Enaam Arnaout, leader of a US Islamic charity, was indicted Wednesday on charges of fraudulently funneling money to al Qaeda terrorist network led by Osama bin Laden.

Arnaout, a Syrian born naturalized US citizen, is executive director of Chicago-based Benevolence International Foundation. He has been in federal custody since his arrest April 30.

The seven counts include mail fraud, obstruction of justice, money laundering and providing material support to organizations engaged in violent activities.

"The indictment describes a multinational criminal enterprise that for at least a decade used charitable contributions of innocent Americans -- Muslim, non-Muslim and corporations alike --to support al Qaeda, the Chechen mujahideen and armed violence in Bosnia," the Justice Department said in a written release.

The indictment outlines a series of specific deliveries of money and equipment for use by the terrorist groups including missiles, bombs, mortars, dynamite and a satellite phone.

If convicted, Arnaout could be sentenced to 90 years in prison without parole.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) contends Arnaout has had a decades-long relationship with Osama bin Laden and his associates. The US government froze the charity's assets last year,suspecting it of supporting terrorist activity.

Attorney General John Ashcroft, who announced the indictment at a news conference in Chicago, vowed that the US government would "find the sources of terrorist blood money."

"It is sinister to prey on good hearts to fund the works of evil," Ashcroft said, but he did not specify how much money was diverted to terrorists.

Ashcroft said documents found in the organization's office in Bosnia have provided "chilling" evidence tying Arnaout directly tobin Laden and al-Qaida.

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