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Hayat Tahrir al-Sham fighters -- to whom Irvine resident Jason Fong is accused of trying to send information on how to make chemical weapons and explosives -- storm a village in western Syria in 2017. | Photo courtesy of Qasioun News Agency/Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 3.0)
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An Irvine man was indicted Wednesday for allegedly attempting to help two foreign terrorist organizations.
Jason Fong, 24, was accused of attempting to provide “material support” to Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS, and Hamas, according to federal prosecutors.
He allegedly attempted in spring 2020 to send the terrorist groups tactical, combat and weapons training material to HTS that included information on how to make chemical weapons and improvised explosive devices.
In May 2020, Fong also allegedly attempted to raise money for Hamas, prosecutors said.
The FBI, U.S. Navy, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Irvine Police Department and New York Police Department are participating in the ongoing investigation, according to the U.S. Attorney’s office.
Fong is scheduled to be arraigned May 23. He could face up to 20 years in prison on each of the four terrorism counts in the indictment.