This article was originally published by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and is reprinted with permission.
A U.S. federal court on June 3 sentenced a citizen of Uzbekistan living in New York to 15 years in prison for supporting the Islamic State extremist group (IS), a designated terrorist organization.
Dilkhayot Kasimov, 34, was convicted in September 2019 on two charges of conspiring to and attempting to provide material support to IS following a one-week trial.
He is the latest member of a group of conspirators to be sentenced to more than a decade-long prison term.
In 2015 Kasimov provided money – both his own and cash collected from others – to Abdurasul Juraboev and Akhror Saidakhmetov, who planned to travel to Syria to fight on behalf of IS.
Kasimov, who lived in Brooklyn, drove to nearby John F. Kennedy International Airport in February of that year to meet Saidakhmetov and hand him $1,600 in cash on behalf of himself, co-conspirator Abror Habibov and others.
U.S. Attorney Breon Peace for the Eastern District of New York said the long sentence “demonstrates the significant consequences for those who help terrorist groups, including by facilitating travel of others to join [IS].”
Co-defendants Juraboev and Saidakahmetov were each sentenced to 15 years’ imprisonment, while co-defendant Azizjon Rakhmatov was sentenced to 12.5 years’ imprisonment.
Habibov and co-defendant Akmal Zakirov are awaiting sentencing.
A seventh co-conspirator, Dilshod Khusanov, who was charged in a separate indictment, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to provide material support to designated foreign terrorist organizations and is scheduled to be sentenced on July 5.
