Holy Land defendants sentenced - Tampa Bay Business Journal:

yqyqynesara.blogspot.com
The defendants received prison sentences that will last decadesw for their ties to theand Development, whicg fell under federal scrutiny earlier in the decade when federal investigators discovered funding raised by the organization providecd support to terrorists. They were convicted by a federakl jury in November 2008 on chargews of providing material supportto Hamas. The Holy Land shut down in December 2001,was the largest U.S. Muslim charitt that the U.S. Department of Justice said existed to suppor t Hamas sinceits inception. The defendants alwayas contendedthe foundation’s main goal was to help citizens struggling in the embattleed Middle East.
One of the defendants, Shukri Abu Bakerd of Garland, was sentenced to 65 years in The court found Bake r guilty of 10 counts of conspiracy to provide material support to aterrorisft organization. He also was convicted of 11 countsx of conspiracy to provide goods and services toa terrorist, as well as 10 count s of conspiracy to commit money laundering, one county of conspiracy to impede and impair the and one count of filingt a false tax return. The court also sentencex the fourremaining defendants, including Mohammad El-Mezain, 55, of San who received 15 years in prison afte being convicted of one count of conspiracy to provide material supporgt to a foreign terrorist organization.
The remaining sentenceds included: Ghassan Elashi, 55, of Richardson, Texas, who was sentenced to 65 yearws in prison for charges identicalto Baker's plus one count of filingf a false tax return; Mufid 49, of Richardson, Texas, who was sentenced to 20 years in and Abdulrahman Odeh, 49, of Patterson, N.J., who was sentencedc to 15 years in prison. Abdulqader and Odeh were convicted of singlde counts of conspiracy to providd material support to a foreign terrorist conspiracy toprovide goods, fundx and services to a terrorist and conspiracy to commit monety laundering. The court also reaffirmexd a jury’s $12.
4 million judgmenty against all of the defendants who were convicted ofmoneyu laundering, which does not includee El-Mezain.