PHILADELPHIA, Pennsylvania– On Tuesday, four men were indicted by a grand jury in Philadelphia for an alleged plot to support Lebanese based Hezbollah through a number of illegal practices, including providing the group with hundreds of weapons.

The indictment filed Tuesday says two suspects sought to provide over a thousand machine guns to Hezbollah operatives in Lebanon.  The indictment states that two of the alleged plotters were to purchase the weapons in Philadelphia and then ship them to a port city in Syria where they would eventually be distributed to Hezbollah.  The two other indicted men were accused of trying to raise funds for the terrorist group with fake passports and counterfeit cash said U.S. Attorney Michael Levy.  According to Levy, “They were selling counterfeit visas.  They were trying to sell counterfeit U.S. currency as a way of raising money for Hezbollah.”  The FBI has said that an undercover agent thwarted the plotter’s plans.

In a released statement, Levy noted that the indicted men were seeking to support Hezbollah with some serious firepower.  He added that “the purchase of stolen goods- or what they believed were stolen goods- was a way of raising money by selling those items.  The purchase of machine guns is clearly buying military weapons, which can only be used in warfare.”

In addition to the four men indicted, eight others were charged with lesser offenses related to schemes to traffic in stolen or counterfeit goods.  In all, federal authorities have said that thirteen suspects are in custody, while eleven more were being sought in connection with the alleged plot to aid Hezbollah.

The indictment comes just a day after officials say they broke up a similar plot.  That plot was disrupted when undercover meetings in Philadelphia unearthed plans to send machine guns and anti-aircraft missiles to Syria.  Said Levy, “We have, in this case, charged a number of people who are basically part of a supply stream for a terrorist organization.  But this is just part of an ongoing fight we’re going to have for a long time.”

For more information, please see:

Associated Press- Feds: Philadelphia Plot to Buy Weapons for Hezbollah– 25 November 2009

Fox News- Grand Jury Indicts Four Men for Alleged Plot to Support Hezbollah– 25 November 2009

KYW Newsradio- Four Indicted in Philadelphia in Alleged Plot to Support Terrorists– 24 November 2009