BOSTON, July 16 (UPI) -- Boston officials charged two men with fraud for financial transactions tied to a business held by designated terrorists linked to al-Qaida, the FBI reports.
A March 2007 indictment unsealed by the FBI charges Buford Peterson and Oussama Abdul Ziade with making false statements to the U.S. Small Business Administration regarding loan applications for Ptech Inc., a computer software company with an ownership interest held by a designated terrorist.
The indictment says Ptech submitted a $650,000 loan request to the SBA to assist small businesses economically hurt by the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
Stock ownership in Ptech was held by Yassin Kadi, who the federal government considers a foreign terrorist. Kadi was under investigation by the CIA for alleged involvement in the so-called dirty dozen of terrorist financiers linked to al-Qaida chief Osama bin Laden.
The unsealed indictment also charges Ziade with engaging in financial transactions involving property held by Kadi.
Peterson was arrested at John F. Kennedy Airport in New York following a residency in South Korea. He and Ziade each face up to 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine if convicted. Ziade remains at large.
