South African authorities arrest a man suspected of using Bitcoin to finance terrorist activities

According to News.bitcoin, a law enforcement agency in South Africa recently arrested a 35 year old man on suspicion of using cryptocurrency to fund terrorist activities. The investigation was launched in May 2018, when the Financial Intelligence Center (FIC) and investigative teams received information about suspicious transactions suspected of being related to terrorist financing. It is reported that on November 30, 2017, the suspect purchased $614 worth of Bitcoin through virtual asset service provider Luno and transferred the funds from the suspect's bank account to Luno's custodial account. Subsequently, these bitcoins were transferred to another wallet associated with an unnamed "independent" organization. South African law enforcement agencies have stated that preliminary investigations have shown that these funds were transferred to provide weapons, economic assistance, and other projects to "participants" in another country. After determining the purpose of the funds, South African law enforcement conducted a raid on the suspect's residence on October 24th with a search warrant and seized multiple items, including firearms that were not locked in a safe place as required by law. The man is expected to appear in Lichtenburg District Court on January 6th.