The director of Tamil Tiger terrorist group in New York, Karunakaran Kandasamay alias Karuna (50) was arrested last Tuesday (24) by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in Queens, New York in the United States.

"The defendant, Karunakaran Kandasamay, also known as "Karuna" was arrested in Queens, New York, and is scheduled to have his initial appearance this afternoon (25) before United States Magistrate Judge Kiyo A. Matsumoto at the U.S. Courthouse, 225 Cadman Plaza East, Brooklyn, New York," states the US Embassy in Sri Lanka issuing a press release.

If convicted, Karuna faces a maximum sentence of 15 years' imprisonment.

The complaint alleges that Karuna is the director of the American branch of the LTTE, which is located in Queens, New York, and operates through a front organization called the World Tamil Coordinating Committee (the "WTCC"). KARUNA oversees and directs the LTTE's activities in the United States, including fundraising

According to the press release from the Embassy of United States, Kandasamy was arrested by the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF) on federal charges of providing material in support of the LTTE by fund raising.

U.S. Attorney Roslynn R. Mauskopf for the Eastern District of New York said that as head of the American branch of the LTTE, Kandasamy allegedly oversaw and directed group's activities in the United States, including fundraising, the news reports further state.

US Embassy states that, Kandasamy was arrested by the JTTF of the federal law enforcement agency on late Tuesday (24).

The press release further states that in the summer and fall of 2004, for example, the LTTE allegedly undertook a major worldwide campaign to raise money for its planned offensive against the Sri Lankan government in late 2005. In support of this planned offensive, Karuna held fundraising events in November and December 2004 at a church and a public high school in Queens, New York, and a school in South Brunswick, New Jersey where hundreds have attended.

He is also alleged for arranging meetings between LTTE intelligence agents and prominent LTTE supporters from the United States who knew about military technology to gather information for researching military technology such as engineering, weaponry, medicine, and other scientific fields.

Assistant FBI Director of the New York Field office Mark Mershon says, Kandasamy hasn't merely supported the Tamil Tigers' cause, but also orchestrated U.S. support. "We can no sooner allow terrorists to raise funds here than we would allow them to carry out acts of terrorism here," he added.

"According to the complaint, the LTTE relies on sympathetic Tamil expatriates residing in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, France, and several other countries to raise and launder money; smuggle arms, explosives, equipment, and technology into LTTE-controlled territory; obtain intelligence about the Sri Lankan government; and spread propaganda. To coordinate these activities, the LTTE has established "branches" in at least 12 countries, including the United States," the press release further states.

The US government's investigation has been conducted by the New York and Newark Divisions of the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF), with assistance provided by more than 20 of the FBI's Field Offices, including New Haven, CT, Buffalo, NY, Seattle, WA, Baltimore, MD, Chicago, IL, San Jose, CA, and Los Angeles, CA; the United States Attorney's Office for the District of Connecticut; U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE); the U.S. Department of State; and several foreign governments.

Eleven defendants were previously indicted in the Eastern District of New York on charges relating to the material support of the LTTE. One indictment, United States v. Sathajhan Sarachandran, et al., charges five individuals with attempting to purchase several dozen surface-to-air missiles and other military arms and equipment from an undercover FBI agent in Queens, New York. The second indictment, United States v.Thavarajah Pratheepan et al., charges the defendants with participating a wide-ranging conspiracy to provide material support to the LTTE through the procurement of military arms and technology, attempting to bribe purported U.S. State Department officials to remove the LTTE from the foreign terrorist organization list and to sell classified intelligence concerning the LTTE, fundraising, and the LTTE's covert payment of a U.S. Congressman's trip to LTTE-controlled territory.