Conviction in Smuggling Ring Tied to Terrorism
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From Times Wire Reports
The first person convicted under a law that bars aid to terrorists was sentenced to 155 years in prison for leading a cigarette smuggling ring that funneled profits to the Lebanese group Hezbollah.
Mohamad Hammoud, 29, masterminded a scheme to bring cigarettes from North Carolina, where low taxes keep down prices, to Michigan for resale. In June, he was found guilty of sending $3,500 to Hezbollah.
Hammoud’s older brother, Chawki Hammoud, was sentenced to more than four years in prison for his role in the ring.
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