HOPATCONG, N.J. (1010 WINS) -- A 54-year-old U.S. Army veteran from Hopatcong pleaded guilty to secretly providing financial support for Al-Nusra Front, the Syrian branch of Al-Qaeda, the Department of Justice announced Tuesday.
Maria Bell, who was a U.S. soldier in the 1980s and later served in the National Guard, admitted to sending $567,000 to Al-Nusra associates across 18 payments in 2018.
She also used her experience as a soldier to give advice on purchasing guns and operational security, according to court records obtained by the New Jersey Herald.
Prosecutors said Bell was romantically involved with an Al-Nusra fighter, and that she eventually attempted to travel to Turkey to meet him but was arrested before she could leave the country.
Police arrested her at her Hopatcong home in 2020 and charged her with knowingly concealing the provision of material support or resources to a designated foreign terrorist organization.
She faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of double what she sent to Al-Nusra — over $1 million.
Bell is slated for sentencing by a federal court on Nov. 21.
Al-Nusra is opposed to Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad’s regime, partially aligning the group with U.S. interests. America also funded groups opposed to Assad and carried out air strikes against Syrian military facilities.
In fact, American weapons and supplies ended up in the hands of Al-Nusra as the C.I.A. worked to arm rebels opposing Assad, according to reporting from the Washington Post.
Still, the government considers Al-Nusra a terrorist organization which it is illegal to provide support for.
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