Prosecutors: Uzbek native used codes to hide terror payment
DENVER — U.S. prosecutors told a jury Thursday that a Philadelphia man frustrated by mistreatment of Muslims used codes and other deception to hide a $300 payment in support of a terrorist group, but defence attorneys said the native of Uzbekistan was only paying down a debt to an acquaintance.
Opening statements marked the start of a Denver trial that is expected to include testimony from international witnesses using aliases and disguises, transcripts of phone and email conversations in at least three languages and a team of translators dedicated to helping the defendant understand the proceedings.
Federal authorities arrested Bakhtiyor Jumaev more than six years ago at his apartment in Philadelphia. The case is being tried in Colorado because the man who received the money lived in suburban Denver at the time.
Jumaev is charged with conspiring to provide material support to a terrorist organization and providing or attempting to provide material support.