Uzbek-U.S. citizen extradited from Georgia to New York on ISIS support charges

September 29, 2026 at 04:22 PM2 min

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Davud Ansariy, a 41-year-old Uzbek-U.S. citizen, was extradited from Georgia to New York on September 23 to face charges of supporting ISIS and al-Nusrah Front. He pleaded not guilty on September 24 and was held without bail. Ansariy is accused of leading a Brooklyn-based network that financed fighters' travel to Syria.

Key Facts

Davud Ansariy, 41, was arrested in Tbilisi in August 2026 and extradited to the United States on September 23.
He faces one count of conspiracy to provide material support and one count of providing and attempting to provide material support to ISIS and al-Nusrah Front.
If convicted, Ansariy faces up to 35 years in prison.
Prosecutors allege the network helped finance the travel of at least three people to Syria in 2013, all believed killed there.
Ansariy pleaded not guilty on September 24 and was held without bail, the New York Post reported.

Extradition and Charges

Davud Ansariy, also known as Kozimjon Gafurov and Kozim, was arrested in Tbilisi in August 2026 after traveling from Uzbekistan. He was extradited to the United States on September 23 and appeared in federal court in Brooklyn. A federal grand jury in Brooklyn indicted Ansariy in November 2021 on charges of conspiracy to provide material support and providing material support to ISIS and al-Nusrah Front. Both groups were designated by the United States as foreign terrorist organizations at the time of the alleged conduct. Ansariy pleaded not guilty on September 24 and was held without bail, the New York Post reported.

The Brooklyn Network

Prosecutors allege Ansariy led a group based primarily in Brooklyn whose members planned to travel to Syria to join ISIS or al-Nusrah Front or helped finance such trips. Participants referred to the group as “chayxona,” an Uzbek word meaning “tea house” or “tea party.” Money collected through the network was used to pay for travel of aspiring fighters to Syria and to support families left behind by those who traveled there, as well as families of those killed while fighting. These collections helped finance the travel of at least three people to Syria in 2013, all of whom are believed to have been killed there. Investigators also link the network to Akhror Saidakhmetov, who was arrested at John F. Kennedy International Airport on February 25, 2015, while attempting to board a flight to Istanbul.

Flight and Arrest

Ansariy left the United States for Turkey in May 2016, buying a one-way ticket the day before his departure. He left five days after one of his alleged co-conspirators was arrested on May 11 and did not return to the United States until his extradition this month. Georgian authorities arrested him after he traveled from Uzbekistan to Tbilisi in August 2026. Akhror Saidakhmetov later pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 15 years in prison.