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U.S. Authorities Arrest and Charge Men Accused of Sending Crypto and VPN Support to ISIS

The cases show federal agents used undercover sources and digital tracing to disrupt alleged plots and tech-enabled support for ISIS.

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WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 12: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Kash Patel testifies during a Senate Committee on Appropriations, Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies hearing in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill on May 12, 2026 in Washington, DC. The hearing was held to examine the FY2027 budget requests by the federal law enforcement agencies. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 12: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Kash Patel looks on during a Senate Committee on Appropriations, Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies hearing in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill on May 12, 2026 in Washington, DC. The hearing was held to examine the FY2027 budget requests by the federal law enforcement agencies. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)
FILE - An FBI seal is displayed on a podium before a news conference at the field office in Portland, Ore., Jan. 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane, File)

Overview

  • Federal agents arrested three U.S. citizens who prosecutors say sent more than $2,000 in cryptocurrency to someone they believed was an ISIS member to buy drones and rocket-propelled grenades, a scheme first disclosed in court filings after arrests made on Friday.
  • Those three defendants are accused of using Discord, voice calls and other messaging platforms to pledge allegiance to ISIS and plan attacks on U.S. service members overseas, according to the criminal complaint filed in Kansas.
  • Separately, prosecutors charged Mohamed Sagha in New Jersey after he allegedly joined pro-ISIS online chats, tried to travel to Syria, shared photos of potential U.S. targets and bought a virtual private network that he sent to a person he thought was an ISIS fighter.
  • One defendant in the Kansas-California case is a Navy veteran who served aboard the USS John S. McCain, and all four defendants face federal material-support counts that carry up to 20 years in prison if convicted.
  • The investigations were run by multiple FBI Joint Terrorism Task Forces working with local police, illustrating how undercover human sources, coordinated field offices and scrutiny of crypto and VPN use are central to disrupting homegrown online radicalization.