A Belgian terrorist suspect has been arrested at Bucharest airport in Romania on Friday, the US Department of Justice reported. He will be extradited to the United States, where he faces decades in prison.
Mohammad Ibrahim Bazzi, a 58-year-old Belgian-Lebanese man, was arrested on Friday. He is suspected by the US of having financially supported Hezbollah, a Shia Islamist political party, which is regarded as a terrorist group by the US and several other countries "responsible for death and destruction."
"He operates or transacts business in or through Belgium, Lebanon, Iraq, and several countries in West Africa," to finance the group, a previous statement from the American justice system on Bazzi read. These companies have also been on sanctions lists since 2018.
Before the arrest, the Americans promised up to $10 million for any information related to him that could lead to his arrest. Bazzi was finally arrested by Romanian law enforcement authorities upon his arrival at the airport. The US intends to "seek Bazzi’s extradition to the Eastern District of New York to face the charges in the indictment."
Each count in the indictment is punishable by up to 20 years imprisonment.
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“As alleged, Mohammad Bazzi thought that he could secretly move hundreds of thousands of dollars from the United States to Lebanon without detection by law enforcement," said prosecutor Breon Peace said in a statement. "Today’s arrest proves that Bazzi was wrong.”
The Treasury Department designated Bazzi a terrorist in 2018 for his alleged support of the activities of Hezbollah, but he is also being prosecuted for money laundering.
