A Tajik national living in the United States illegally was arrested on February 26th after he was accused of conspiring to support the Islamic State (IS) and its Central Asian offshoot, ISIS-K, by sending tens of thousands of dollars in funding to IS followers in Turkey and Syria.

Mansuri Manuchekhri, who lived in Brooklyn, is also charged with possessing a firearm while unlawfully in the United States and with immigration fraud. The FBI said he entered the United States in June 2016 on a non-immigrant tourist visa and remained after his visa expired in December 2016.

According to the criminal complaint, Manuchekhri facilitated $70,000 in payments to individuals connected to the Islamic State in Turkey and Syria, including to an individual who was later arrested by Turkish authorities for his alleged involvement in a January 2024 terrorist attack on a church in Istanbul, where ISIS-K publicly claimed responsibility.

The complaint said the individual sent a photo of Syrian currency to Manuchekhri to confirm the money he sent had been received.

Manuchekhri also frequently trained on firearms and sent videos of himself firing assault rifles to an IS affiliate in Turkey, on one occasion with the message saying “Thank God, I am ready, brother“ and on another occasion with the message saying “Praise be upon God. . . . Brother, I go for training at least once or twice a week.“

A close relative called the New York State Terrorism Tips Hotline to express concern that Manuchekhri might commit acts of violence.

US Magistrate Judge Robert M. Levy ordered Manuchekhri to be held for trial in an arraignment in federal court in Brooklyn on February 26th.