French Judge: ATMs Help Finance Militants

[maddezmom]

PARIS - Radical Islamic cells in Europe are using an ingenious way to finance terror networks that's virtually impossible to trace: withdrawing hundreds of thousands of dollars a month from cash machines with fake credit cards, according to France's top anti-terrorism judge.


AP Photo



Jean-Louis Bruguiere, who's been at the forefront of the war on terror for 20 years, also told The Associated Press the Caucasus has replaced Afghanistan (news - web sites) as a key militant training ground for Osama bin Laden (news - web sites)'s al-Qaida network and other groups around the world.


Bruguiere said militant financing networks were small, scattered around the world and represent millions of dollars in fund-raising for terrorists.


The judge said authorities caught on to the cash-machine scheme two years ago when investigators uncovered one such financing cell operating in France. Ten suspected Islamic militants were withdrawing more than $100,000 dollars a month from cash-machines in other European countries, where they were arrested.

more: http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=535&ncid=535&e=4&u=/ap/20041209/ap_on_re_eu/terrorism_judge_militant_money

[vpigrad]

1. How long before Bushie declares...

"Death to ATM machines!"

[AZCat]

2. Never!

His buddy Diebold would lose a source of income.