A New York woman was charged with providing material support to a terrorist organization after the FBI said she sent more than $30,000 in cryptocurrency to a suspected Palestine Islamic Jihad fighter in Gaza who allegedly helped carry out attacks against Israel, according to NBC New York, which first reported the charges.
The defendant, Catherine Beth Washburn, was also a leader of the Direct Action Movement for Palestinian Liberation, known as DAMPL, a group that formed after the October 7, 2023 attacks in Israel, federal prosecutors said. The George Washington University Program on Extremism has characterized DAMPL as a domestic extremist group involved in “vandalism, intimidation and incendiary attacks.”
Among the evidence cited by prosecutors was an alleged message Washburn wrote: “I wish every day were October 7.” The Justice Department also released a photo of Washburn pictured with two grenades in front of a Hamas flag. The Justice Department said she separately posted a laughing emoji after joking that she would face life in prison for her past activities, which included fundraising.
U.S. Attorney Michael DiGiacomo said in a statement: “This defendant, fueled by her self-described hate of Israel and Jewish people, went to great lengths to attempt to provide financial support to terrorist organizations.”
DAMPL has openly voiced support for Hamas rhetoric, and its members have used social media to spread the group’s message, NBC New York reported.
Washburn faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted on the terror-related counts. Calls to the Federal Defenders Office in New York were not immediately returned, and a message was left at Washburn’s home for a family representative, according to NBC New York.
Featured image: Bushwick Daily image
