{"id":25550,"date":"2016-07-25T14:24:40","date_gmt":"2016-07-25T21:24:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cjnotebook.com\/?p=25550"},"modified":"2016-07-25T15:34:01","modified_gmt":"2016-07-25T22:34:01","slug":"man-who-admitted-traveling-to-syria-to-pledge-allegiance-to-isis-sentenced-to-15-years","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cjnotebook.com\/?p=25550","title":{"rendered":"Man Who Tried to Go to Syria to Pledge Allegiance to ISIS Sentenced to 15 Years"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 SANTA ANA, CALIF.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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\"u.s.DISTRICTAn Orange County man who admitted that he tried to go to Syria to pledge allegiance to \u00a0ISIS and train to use weapons was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison, according to officials.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Federal Judge James V. Selna sentenced Adam Dandach<\/strong>, 22, of Orange, \u00a0and also ordered that he be on supervised release for the remainder of his life, officials said.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 In sentencing Dandach, Judge Selna said the defendant\u2019s conduct was \u201cserious,\u201d required \u201csignificant planning,\u201d and went on for more than a year.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 When he pleaded guilty in August 2015, Dandach admitted that, beginning in approximately November 2013 and continuing until July 2, 2014, he tried to travel to Syria to join ISIS.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 Prosecutors said Dandach \u201cread materials on achieving martyrdom through jihadi fighting,\u201d communicated with others affiliated with ISIS in Syria to get information about joining the group. He made online posts that celebrated terrorists, prosecutors said in a sentencing memorandum filed with the court.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cMr. Dandach was deliberate in his planning to join the ranks of terrorists bent on killing Americans,\u201d said Deirdre Fike, the Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI\u2019s Los Angeles Field Office. \u201cThis sentence makes it clear that the government will not tolerate support for terrorism by American citizens.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 According to court documents, on July 1, 2014, Dandach purchased a ticket to fly from Orange County to Istanbul. <\/span><\/p>\n

The FBI intercepted Dandach at the John Wayne International Airport the following day. <\/span><\/p>\n

Dandach told FBI special agents that his ultimate destination was Syria and that he intended to pledge allegiance to ISIS\u2019s leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. He explained that he wished to live under the control of ISIS and intended to undergo weapons training, according to officials.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Dandach also admitted that he made a false statement in a passport application, namely that he had lost his previous passport. In fact, a family member had taken Dandach\u2019s passport from him in 2013 when he expressed an interest in traveling to Syria, according to officials.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Dandach \u201chad been planning for over a year to join ISIS, a murderous terrorist organization that he knew committed horrifically violent acts,\u201d according to the government\u2019s sentencing brief. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cHe possessed videos of their decapitations and pictures of their atrocities on his cellular telephone. Defendant admitted that ISIS committed these atrocities to instill fear in its enemies. He admitted that he intended to pledge allegiance to the leader of ISIS. And, he admitted that he would do whatever ISIL\u2019s\u00a0leader asked of him.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The FBI investigated this case.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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