Ali Charaf Damache, Conspiracy to Provide Material Support to Terrorists, Pennsylvania 2011
Algerian Man Pleads Guilty to Supporting Terrorists in US
A 53-year-old Algerian man, Ali Charaf Damache, aka Theblackflag, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
According to the indictment, Damache conspired with Mohammad Hassan Khalid and others to support, recruit, and coordinate a terrorist cell to wage violent jihad in and around Europe. His co-conspirator, Colleen R. LaRose, aka Fatima LaRose, aka JihadJane, was a resident of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania at the time of the acts alleged in the indictment and was sentenced to 10 years in prison for her involvement in this conspiracy.
The indictment alleges that Damache, Khalid, LaRose, and others recruited men online to wage violent jihad in South Asia and Europe and recruited women who had passports and the ability to travel to and around Europe in support of violent jihad.
Damache was extradited from Spain in July 2017 and is scheduled to be sentenced on October 30 before U.S. District Judge Petrese B. Tucker. As part of his guilty plea, Damache has agreed to be sentenced to a 180-month term of imprisonment and has waived his right to appeal his sentence.
Upon completing his prison sentence, Damache will be removed from the United States and returned to Ireland or, in the alternative, Algeria. This case was investigated by the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force in Philadelphia and the FBI Field Divisions in New York, Denver, Baltimore, and Washington, D.C., and the IRS.
The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs and authorities in Spain provided substantial assistance. Authorities in Ireland also provided assistance in this matter.
Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers, U.S. Attorney William M. McSwain for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, and Assistant Director in Charge William F. Sweeney, Jr. of the FBI’s New York Field Office commended the law enforcement agencies and agents who brought Damache to justice.
Key Facts
- State: Pennsylvania
- Category: Violent Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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