Illinois man pleads guilty to trying to join al Qaeda
CHICAGO - A man has pleaded guilty to a terrorism charge for attempting to join al Qaeda-affiliated fighters in the Middle East.
At a hearing Tuesday in Chicago, Abdella Ahmad Tounisi spoke softly as he told a federal judge he understood the consequences of pleading guilty. The 21-year-old occasionally turned to smile at nearly 30 relatives and friends on spectator benches.
Judge Samuel Der-Yeghiayan asked the Aurora man to explain his crime in his own words. Tounisi responded, "I wanted to go to Syria to fight with Jabhat al-Nusra." He added the group was also known as "Al Qaeda in Iraq."
The FBI arrested Tounisi in 2013 after he contacted undercover agents through fake extremist websites.
Tounisi pleaded guilty to providing material support to terrorists. He faces a maximum 15-year prison sentence.