USA: Uzbeks, Kazakh charged in New York with recruiting for Islamic State
| Publisher | Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty |
| Publication Date | 12 June 2015 |
| Cite as | Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, USA: Uzbeks, Kazakh charged in New York with recruiting for Islamic State, 12 June 2015, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/558bc5074.html [accessed 28 May 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
June 12, 2015
An Uzbek citizen June 11 became the fifth person in New York to be charged with plotting to recruit U.S. fighters to join the Islamic State militant group.
Akmal Zakirov, 29, pleaded not guilty during a hearing in federal court in Brooklyn to two counts of conspiring to provide material support to a terrorist organization.
He is scheduled to appear again in court June 16 along with four previously charged defendants: Abdurasul Hasanovich Juraboev, Dilkhayot Kasimov and Abror Habibov, all three of Uzbekistan, and Akhror Saidakhmetov, a native of Kazakhstan.
Prosecutors have said Saidakhmetov and Juraboev planned to travel to Syria to fight on behalf of the Islamic State.
They said Zakirov and Habibov discussed providing their own money to cover Saidakhmetov's travel expenses and solicited others to provide funds.
Prosecutors said several people transferred $2,400 into Zakirov's bank account in the eight days prior to Saidakhmetov's scheduled departure, with the money intended to fund his travel.
If convicted, Zakirov faces up to 30 years in prison. His co-defendants have pleaded not guilty.
Based on reporting by AP and Reuters
Link to original story on RFE/RL website
