Police Disagree With Maryland Man's Contention That He Was Just "Scamming" Money From ISIS
A Maryland man told the FBI they should be thanking him after they discovered he’d received a series of electronic payments from ISIS this summer. For some reason, the FBI disagrees.
The incredible story of 30-year-old Mohamed Elshinawy’s chutzpah, via the Times:
After he was confronted by the F.B.I. this summer, Mr. Elshinawy acknowledged getting thousands of dollars from an Islamic State source in Egypt but said that he was trying to “scam some money” from ISIS, not wage an attack, according to an affidavit. Much of the money was spent on communication tools, including cellphones, calling cards and a laptop, the authorities said.
Mr. Elshinawy even told the F.B.I. that it should laud him for his work and give him a job in terrorist financing, officials said.
Mr. Elshinawy even told the F.B.I. that it should laud him for his work and give him a job in terrorist financing, officials said. Sadly, the FBI opted for a different response: An arrest. Still, it seems like they were at least a little impressed.
“He showed a level of tradecraft that we haven’t seen in many other cases,” an anonymous law enforcement official tells the Times. Not good enough, though...
