Repatriated ISIS Fighter From Texas Pleads Guilty To Terror Charge, Faces 20 Years In Prison

A Dallas man who handled communications for Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) has pleaded guilty to a terrorism charge.

In a press release Wednesday, the Department of Justice said the man, identified as 23-year-old Omer Kuzu, and his brother reached Turkey in 2014. They were then picked up by an "ISIS taxi" and "smuggled across the border into Syria." The two finally ended up in Mosul, Iraq, where they "underwent five days of physical and weapons training" alongside 40 other foreign fighters. After the training, Kuzu was sent to Raqqah, Syria, where he began working at the ISIS telecommunications directorate.

"Shortly thereafter, Kuzu admits, he pledged allegiance, or 'Bay’ah,' to ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and the Islamic Caliphate. He was given a monthly stipend, a Chinese-made AK 47, and an ISIS bride. Subsequently, Kuzu was sent to the second lines in Kobani, Syria and Hama, Syria, to provide communications support for ISIS fighters on the front lines. He also worked in the Caliphate’s technology center," the press release stated.

In March last year, the accused was captured by the Syrian Democratic Forces and handed over to the FBI after handling communications for the militant group for five years. After arriving in the United States, he was charged with conspiring to provide material support to ISIS. On Wednesday, the department announced he pleaded guilty to the charge and could face up to 20 years in federal prison. His sentencing is scheduled for January.

Speaking about the case, U.S. Attorney Erin Nealy Cox for the Northern District of Texas said in the press release, "This defendant, an American citizen radicalized on American soil, pledged allegiance to a brutal terrorist group and traveled halfway across the world to enact its agenda. The United States must do everything we can to prevent and deter this type of radicalization and prioritize prosecution of those that support the terroristic agenda of ISIS. I am gratified Mr. Kuzu faced justice in an American court."

Meanwhile, asserting that "preventing terrorism remains FBI’s top priority," FBI Dallas Special Agent in Charge Matthew DeSarno said, "The defendant intentionally left the United States to join, train with, and fight on behalf of ISIS. The North Texas Joint Terrorism Task Force worked closely with our domestic and foreign partners to ensure the threat he posed was mitigated. We remain vigilant in our effort to prevent terrorism as well as hold terrorists, and those who provide support to terrorist organizations, accountable for their actions."