A Tajik man living in the United States illegally was charged with trying to provide support to the Islamic State and affiliated terror groups, including providing money to the families of terrorists killed on the battlefield, the Justice Department said Wednesday.
Mansuri Manuchekhri, 33, who lived in Brooklyn, New York, appeared before a federal judge Wednesday and was ordered to be detained, authorities said. He also faces charges of possessing guns while unlawfully in the U.S. and immigration fraud, according to court documents.
“Under no circumstances will my Department of Justice tolerate terrorism,” said Attorney General Pam Bondi.
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Mansuri Manuchekhri, 33, pictured with guns, is accused of providing support to the Islamic State terror group and immigration fraud. (Justice Department )
Manuchekhri allegedly facilitated $70,000 in payments to individuals affiliated with ISIS in Turkey and Syria, including to someone arrested for his alleged role in an attack on a church in Istanbul last year during a morning mass.
The Islamic State-Khorasan Province, or ISIS-K, claimed responsibility for the attack.
“As alleged, the defendant, who was in the United States illegally, not only facilitated tens of thousands of dollars in contributions to ISIS extremists overseas, but trained with assault rifles at shooting ranges in the United States and declared his readiness to ISIS,” U.S. Attorney John Durham said.
Manuchekhri traveled to the U.S. from Tajikistan in June 2016 on a non-immigrant tourist visa and remained in the country after his visa expired in December 2016.
In March 2017, Manuchekhri allegedly paid an American citizen to enter into a sham marriage so he could obtain legal status. However, his petition was denied after he failed to provide certain supporting documentation, the Justice Department said.
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ISIS has long waged a recruitment and propaganda war online. (Reuters)
The FBI was alerted to Manuchekhri, a truck driver who frequently traveled throughout the U.S., in August 2024 after a family member contacted the New York State Terrorism Tips Hotline and expressed concern Manuchekhri might commit acts of violence.
The family member said Manuchekhri had threatened to kill them multiple times.
Between December 2021 and April 2023, Manuchekhri sent around $70,000 to people connected to ISIS in Turkey and Syria, federal prosecutors said. He also communicated with someone in Turkey who said the money would be given to ISIS or ISIS-K members and their family members, the court documents state.
In addition, Manuchekhri praised ISIS attacks and has multiple ISIS propaganda videos on his iCloud account. He also possessed multiple guns and frequently visited shooting ranges.
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His iCloud account had multiple images of him with guns, federal prosecutors said.
If convicted, Manuchekhri faces up to 45 years in prison.