US Citizen Sentenced to 20 Years for Providing Material Support to ISIS in Syria

2023-04-04 02:55:57

(MENAFN) Emraan Ali, a 55-year-old United States citizen originally from Trinidad and Tobago, has been sentenced to 20 years in federal prison in Miami for conspiring to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization. Ali had moved his family from Trinidad and Tobago to Brazil, then to Turkey and eventually Syria in March 2015, falsely telling his children that they were going on vacation when in fact he intended to join the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group. After arriving in Syria, IS registered Ali and his family, and Ali underwent religious and military training with other English speakers, learning how to operate automatic weapons such as the AK-47 assault rifle and PKC machine gun.

Officials revealed that after being discharged from combat duty, Ali worked in residential construction for IS in the group's then-de facto capital of Raqqa. He also became a merchant, buying and selling livestock, cars, weapons, weapons accessories, and telephones to and from other IS members. Additionally, Ali provided money remitting services to other Trinidadian IS fighters in Syria and donated his own money to support the IS cause. Ali's guilty plea in November led to his sentencing on Tuesday, marking a significant victory in the fight against terrorism.

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