Fake Charity Funnels Cash To Hamas

Bitcoin coin on scattered euro banknotes

A California man now faces terrorism charges after prosecutors say he used a fake “Gaza charity” to funnel American donors’ money to Hamas.

Story Snapshot

Federal prosecutors say San Diego resident Reda Mazen Rida Sabassi raised about $600,000 through online “humanitarian” fundraisers and a charity front, then routed money to Hamas and himself.
The Justice Department says Sabassi sent around $116,000 to a Hamas member and tried to convert roughly $382,000 into cryptocurrency to move through the Hamas-linked group Gaza Now.
Officials accuse him of exploiting the October 7 terror attack to prey on Americans’ compassion and bypass United States sanctions that ban support for Hamas.
The case highlights how terror groups hide behind charities and crowdfunding, and why careful enforcement is vital to protect donors and national security.

What Federal Prosecutors Say This California “Charity” Really Did

Federal prosecutors say 38-year-old San Diego resident Reda Mazen Rida Sabassi did not just run a charity; they allege he ran a pipeline from American donors’ wallets to the terrorist group Hamas. According to a five-count complaint, the United States Department of Justice charged him with terrorism, sanctions evasion, wire fraud, money laundering, and making false statements for diverting funds raised through supposed charitable campaigns to Hamas and for personal use.^[8] Prosecutors say he used online donation platforms and a front group called The Arab Charity Foundation, also known as Ikram, to make the fundraisers look like pure humanitarian aid for people in Gaza.^[8]

Court documents say that between December 2023 and February 2024, Sabassi raised roughly six hundred thousand dollars through online campaigns that appeared to help civilians caught in the Gaza war.^[3] Prosecutors allege that behind the scenes, the real targets were Hamas channels. They say he sent about one hundred sixteen thousand dollars to a known Hamas member and then tried to turn about three hundred eighty-two thousand dollars into cryptocurrency so he could move it through Gaza Now, which the government has linked to Hamas fundraising.^[3] The complaint also says he used some donor money to pay his own rent and personal credit card bills, turning what looked like charity into both terror finance and self-enrichment.^[3]

How Hamas and “Sham Charities” Exploit Western Donors

This case fits a pattern national security officials have warned about for years: terrorist networks hiding behind “relief” groups, foundations, and online campaigns that tug hard on Western hearts. In 2025, the United States Treasury Department sanctioned several overseas sham charities that claimed to do humanitarian work in Gaza but in fact funded Hamas’s military wing.^[15] Research on Hamas financing has found that many organizations say they provide aid or medical care while secretly directing money to Hamas’s fighters, often by using charity branding as cover to win trust from ordinary people abroad.^[19] These groups rely on emotional images, war footage, and urgent pleas that encourage quick giving and little vetting.

Past cases show how large these operations can grow if they are not confronted early and firmly. The Holy Land Foundation case, which was once the largest Muslim charity in the United States, ended with federal convictions after jurors found that millions of dollars sent to local “zakat committees” in Palestinian areas were actually material support for Hamas-linked fronts.^[16] Outside America, officials in Europe have uncovered charity networks that raised millions of euros as so-called humanitarian aid and then siphoned funds to Hamas-linked structures, again using relief language and community outreach as a mask.^[17] Each time, donors believed they were helping families, but investigators say a significant slice of the money fed terror groups sworn to destroy Israel and harm the West.

Why This Matters for National Security, Donors, and the Trump-Era Crackdown

Terror finance cases like the one against Sabassi sit at the crossroads of national security, border security, and everyday financial crime. Hamas is a United States-designated foreign terrorist organization, which makes providing it with any material support illegal under American law.^[9] Prosecutors say Sabassi operated safely inside the United States while trying to send funds outward to a group that praised and carried out the October 7 attacks on Israeli civilians.^[8] For many readers, that raises a basic question: how many other “charity” campaigns online are really about advancing a terror agenda rather than easing human suffering?

The Palestinian genocidal Hamas terrorist fundraiser plot gets bigger by the hour. Hamas terrorist fundraiser Reda Sabassi was employed with Booz Allen Hamilton.

Reda Mazen Rida Sabassi, 38, was charged with terrorism, sanctions evasion, wire fraud, money laundering and making… https://t.co/DL9yyD6eCL pic.twitter.com/5KIh4DFOQR

— Saint James Hartline (@JamesHartline) June 18, 2026

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has warned that scammers and bad actors are using the Israel–Hamas conflict to run fake humanitarian drives that steal money or route it to dangerous causes.^[22] That is why today’s enforcement climate under President Trump’s second term places such weight on vetting charities, enforcing sanctions, and cutting off any network that channels support to America’s enemies. For law-abiding donors who truly want to help, this case is a reminder to verify organizations, give through trusted channels, and demand transparency. For citizens focused on border security, strong defense, and protection of American communities, it underscores that the fight against terrorism is not only overseas. It also runs through our financial system, social media feeds, and even the “donate now” buttons that appear on our phones.