The U.S. Justice Department unveiled an indictment Wednesday against a San Diego resident, Reda Mazen Rida Sabassi, 38, accusing him of operating a fake charity that raised roughly $600,000 under the guise of humanitarian aid to Gaza—and funneling the money to the terror organziation Hamas and for personal use after the October 7th atrocities.
1+According to the indictment, Sabassi faces a string of serious charges including terrorism financing, sanctions evasion, fraud, money laundering, and providing false information. Prosecutors allege he used donation campaigns, social media, and crowdfunding sites to raise money—but actually transferred the funds to Hamas and for his own use.
Justice Department officials said he exploited the October 7th attack to stir sympathy and attract donors, while the money actually funded terrorist activity. According to the indictment, some of the money was already transferred to Hamas, and he attempted to convert additional funds into cryptocurrency to smuggle it through Hamas-linked operatives.
1+Prosecutors also allege the defendant didn’t stop at fundraising—he publicly expressed support for Hamas on social media and posted a video showing the October 7th atrocities. The video was reposted on the anniversary of the massacre.
Between December 2023 and February 2024, Sabassi raised roughly $600,000, of which about $116,000 was already transferred to Hamas-linked operatives, and another $382,000 was converted to crypto in an attempt to move it forward. U.S. officials noted that Hamas is designated as a terrorist organization, and this is a serious case of exploiting humanitarian donations to finance terrorist activity. The defendant faces charges carrying potential sentences of decades in prison.