In brief
- Jibreel Pratt has been sentenced to nine years in federal prison after pleading guilty to concealing Bitcoin donations intended for ISIS.
- The scheme involved recording a pledge of allegiance to ISIS, sending BTC payments, and providing tactical documents on weaponizing drones and organizing intelligence operations.
- Pratt used a privacy-focused VPN and encryption software to mask his Bitcoin transfers, according to authorities.
A Detroit man who operated “in the shadows” while attempting to join and finance ISIS through crypto has been sentenced to nine years in federal prison, amid federal efforts to dismantle digital terrorism financing networks.
Jibreel Pratt pleaded guilty in July to two counts of concealing crypto donations he intended for the Islamic State of Iraq and Al-Sham, according to a statement by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan.
“Mr. Pratt is the latest traitor who—in his own words—operated ‘in the shadows,” U.S. Attorney Jerome F. Gorgon, Jr. said in the Thursday statement. “And we will continue to stand guard because he may not be the last.”
Pratt’s scheme began in February 2023 when he contacted someone he believed was an ISIS operative, who was in fact a confidential federal source.
A Confidential Human Source (CHS) is an individual who secretly provides information or assistance to law-enforcement agencies, often working undercover to help investigators gather evidence without revealing their identity.
Over the following months, Pratt expressed his commitment to the terrorist organization by recording a video pledging allegiance to ISIS’s leader, according to the statement.
In March and May 2023, he transferred Bitcoin to the source, believing the funds would help pay for other recruits’ travel to join ISIS or support someone preparing to commit violence in the group’s name.
Pratt supplied the source with extensive handwritten notes and documents detailing operational strategies, including proposals for weaponizing drones and remote-controlled cars with explosives, organizing intelligence networks, and strengthening air defense capabilities.
To avoid detection, Pratt routed his BTC transfers through a privacy-focused VPN and used encryption software to hide transaction details and private keys.
“The sentencing should send a strong message to anyone seeking to support foreign terrorist organizations, via financial means or otherwise, that the FBI will not stand idly by and allow this activity to occur within the United States,” FBI Special Agent in Charge Jennifer Runyan said in the statement.
Targeting extremist crypto funding
Pratt’s conviction comes amid a strengthened federal campaign targeting the use of crypto to fund extremist groups.
In May, a Virginia man received 30 years in prison for channeling over $185,000 in crypto to ISIS operatives in Syria between 2019 and 2022.
The Justice Department seized more than $200,000 in crypto linked to Hamas in March, part of a network authorities said has laundered over $1.5 million since late 2024.
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