A Spanish prosecutor on Friday backed a US request to extradite James Cox Chambers Jr., the multimillionaire heir known as Fergie, who is accused of funneling money to Hamas, The Times of Israel reported.
"The extradition request is not based on mere ideology or political statements, but on an organized, financed and executed action that caused significant material damage," prosecutor Juan Hernandez Villalba told Spain's High Court, which will rule in the coming weeks. The Spanish cabinet will then make the final decision.
Chambers was arrested at the request of US authorities on July 10 while on holiday in Ibiza and has been held since. The US request lists riot, conspiracy to commit riot and international money laundering. The riot counts relate to the 2023 targeting of Israeli defense firm Elbit Systems in New Hampshire by pro-Palestinian activists.
According to The Guardian, cited by The Times of Israel, the US alleges Chambers sent $7.5 million from the US to a Tunisian bank account, money that was allegedly used to support Hamas. A week after the October 7 massacre, Chambers posted on X that "No faction of the Palestinian resistance, Hamas or other, has done *anything* wrong." His legal team says he has paid legal fees for members of Palestine Action, which the US and UK have designated a terrorist group, and calls the case politically motivated.
Chambers received $250 million after divesting from his family's media conglomerate, Cox Enterprises, in 2023, his spokesperson said. The case is sensitive for Spain's Socialist-led government, which has taken a strongly pro-Palestinian line. The charges are allegations; Chambers has not been convicted.
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