ALEXANDRIA, Va. – A Virginia man accused of funneling tens of thousands of dollars to ISIS is on trial in a federal court in Alexandria, with prosecutors alleging he used cryptocurrency to support the terrorist organization.

Mohammed Chhipa, 35, of Springfield, is charged with sending funds earmarked for the Islamic State through a Turkish intermediary.

Prosecutors claim Chhipa converted more than $74,000 into Bitcoin and transferred it to accounts intended for an Islamic State member in Syria, known as Umm Dujanah.

“Over the last few years, we’ve seen illicit actors, terrorist financiers, and others look to cryptocurrency because it lives and moves outside the traditional financial system,” said Ari Redbord, a former senior Treasury advisor on terrorism finance. “But what’s missing in that conversation is that law enforcement…can track and trace the flow of funds on blockchains.”

Tuesday’s court proceedings were unusual, as much of the testimony occurred behind a gray wall separating the public gallery. 

An undercover FBI agent testified about his communications with Chhipa, detailing plans to send funds and discussions of using suicide bombs.

In 2019, the FBI raided Chhipa’s Fairfax home, uncovering materials for building explosives. 

Defense attorneys argue Chhipa was entrapped by federal agents and portrayed him as a “lonely, sad” man manipulated by government sting operations.

“He was a lonely, sad, inflated man who the government tried to set up,” said defense attorney Zachary Deubler, claiming the FBI used a fake bride and marriage broker to gain Chhipa’s trust.

The Associated Press contributed to this report