From Elbit To Ibiza: 'Fergie' Chambers Faces Hamas-Funding Allegations

By Damien Fisher, NH Journal

Multimillionaire Marxist activist James Cox Chambers Jr., aka “Fergie,” remains jailed in Spain as the country weighs a U.S. extradition request arising from allegations that he financed organizations connected to Hamas.

Chambers, commonly known as Fergie, was arrested July 10 while visiting Ibiza with his family. He was later transferred to a prison near Madrid.

The federal indictment against Chambers remains sealed, and the U.S. Department of Justice declined to comment when contacted by NHJournal.

Chambers founded a group in Massachusetts called the Berkshire Communists, which identifies itself as a “revolutionary Marxist-Leninist collective.” The group included Paige Belanger, who participated in the Nov. 20, 2023, attack on the Elbit Systems facility in Merrimack, just weeks after Hamas terrorists murdered about 1,200 people in Israel and took approximately 250 hostages.

Chambers also bought property in New Hampshire and moved there in mid-2023, reportedly with plans to build an MMA gym.

Chambers denies financing terrorism. His attorneys and family say his donations supported humanitarian work in Gaza and that the prosecution is intended to punish his anti-Israel activism.

According to reporter Jay Solomon, the federal case reaches back to the Berkshires commune. In addition to Belanger, participants included Calla Walsh, whose political journey took her from campaigning for Elizabeth Warren to the Elbit attack to appearing on Iranian state television in support of the Islamist regime.

Solomon reports that Chambers and his associates discussed directing substantial sums to radical organizations operating in the United States and the Middle East. Some members of his circle subsequently carried out direct actions against businesses and institutions they accused of supporting Israel.

During the Merrimack attack, Walsh, Belanger, former child actor Bridget Shergalis, and Sophie Ross climbed onto the Elbit Systems building’s roof, smashed windows, damaged ventilation equipment, poured red paint on the property, and sprayed graffiti on the building while employees were inside. Prosecutors estimated the damage at approximately $100,000.

The four women pleaded guilty to criminal mischief and criminal trespass. They received one-year jail sentences, with all but 60 days deferred, and were ordered to pay restitution.

Chambers was at the scene and was interviewed during the demonstration. According to El País, he later acknowledged participating in a Palestine Action protest, saying, “I chained myself to the door.”

His wife, Stella Schnabel, has also acknowledged that Chambers paid legal expenses for some Palestine Action activists, though she denies that he directed the organization.

Far beyond New Hampshire’s borders, Solomon reports that Chambers made six-figure contributions to purported educational and medical charities the U.S. Treasury Department labels as organizations controlled by or affiliated with Hamas and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.

In June 2025, the Treasury Department sanctioned five organizations it described as “sham charities” supporting Hamas’ military wing, as well as Addameer, which Treasury identified as an affiliate of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.

Chambers also publicly claimed to have made a six-figure contribution to a 2025 Gaza flotilla campaign intended to break Israel’s maritime blockade.

The flotilla also had a New Hampshire connection. State Rep. Ellen Read, D-Newmarket, participated in a Gaza-bound flotilla in September 2025, though she left the vessel because of seasickness and hypothermia before Israeli authorities detained the remaining activists.

No public record reviewed by NHJournal establishes that Chambers’ contribution specifically paid for Read’s travel.

Schnabel says Chambers’ donations totaled nearly $1 million and went to humanitarian organizations providing food and medical assistance to Palestinians.

“It’s incredible that this can happen to someone who is supporting people trying to exist and survive colonization and ethnic cleansing,” Schnabel told The Guardian.

Chambers is an heir to the Cox Enterprises fortune. The privately held family company’s businesses include communications, automotive services, and media investments.

Once a Catholic convert, abortion opponent, and defender of free markets, Chambers later converted to Islam and embraced Marxism, anti-Americanism, and increasingly radical politics. In a 2023 interview, he declared, “I chant death to America every day.” He has also defended Russian President Vladimir Putin and supported Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Chambers has since moved to Tunisia, some believe, to evade prosecution.

His arrest came after he and Schnabel began considering relocating their family to Ibiza. Spanish authorities arrested Chambers while he was traveling to visit a prospective school for their children.

The United States reportedly has until Aug. 26 to submit the documents supporting its extradition request. Spain’s National Court would then conduct the judicial portion of the case. If the court approves extradition, Spain’s Council of Ministers would retain the authority to make the final decision.

There is no firm public deadline for that final ruling, and appeals could extend the case.

This story was originally published by the NH Journal, an online news publication dedicated to providing fair, unbiased reporting on, and analysis of, political news of interest to New Hampshire. For more stories from the NH Journal, visit NHJournal.com.