U.S. Citizen Sentenced to Prison for Training From Terrorist Organization
Daniel Joseph Maldonado, a.k.a. Daniel Aljughaifi, a U.S. citizen convicted of receiving training from a foreign terrorist organization has been sentenced to 10 years in prison, senior U.S. law enforcement officials announced.
The 10-year sentence is the maximum statutory penalty for receiving military training from a terrorist organization. U.S. District Judge Gray Miller handed down the maximum sentence during a hearing in Houston. The prison term is to be followed by a three year term of supervised release. Additionally, the court imposed a $1,000 fine.
Assistant Attorney General Kenneth Wainstein says, "We cannot tolerate our own citizens joining the ranks of our enemies and foreign terrorists. Any American who does so can expect swift prosecution and a severe sentence."
Daniel Joseph Maldonado, a.k.a. Daniel Aljughaifi, 28, pleaded guilty in April admitting he had traveled from Houston to Africa in November 2005 and then on to Somalia in December 2006 to join the Islamic Courts Union (ICU) and elements of Al Qaeda to fight "jihad" against the Transitional Federal Government to establish an independent Islamic State in Somalia.
While in Somalia, Maldonado was provided an AK-47, equipped with military combat uniforms and boots in Mogadishu, and participated in training camps in Kismaayo and Jilib, Somalia. The camps included physical fitness, firearms and explosives training, all in preparation to go to the
front to fight for the ICU. Al Qaeda members were present at the training camps. ICU and Al Qaeda, a recognized foreign terrorist organization, worked together to train fighters in the camps to fight jihad to establish an independent Islamic state in Somalia.
Maldonado was captured by Kenyan military forces on January 21, as he fled to avoid Ethiopian and Somalian forces. Expelled by Kenyan officials, Maldonado was turned over to American authorities and flown to Houston accompanied by Special Agents of the FBI. Maldonado has been in federal custody since his return to the United States.
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The 10-year sentence is the maximum statutory penalty for receiving military training from a terrorist organization. U.S. District Judge Gray Miller handed down the maximum sentence during a hearing in Houston. The prison term is to be followed by a three year term of supervised release. Additionally, the court imposed a $1,000 fine.
Assistant Attorney General Kenneth Wainstein says, "We cannot tolerate our own citizens joining the ranks of our enemies and foreign terrorists. Any American who does so can expect swift prosecution and a severe sentence."
Daniel Joseph Maldonado, a.k.a. Daniel Aljughaifi, 28, pleaded guilty in April admitting he had traveled from Houston to Africa in November 2005 and then on to Somalia in December 2006 to join the Islamic Courts Union (ICU) and elements of Al Qaeda to fight "jihad" against the Transitional Federal Government to establish an independent Islamic State in Somalia.
While in Somalia, Maldonado was provided an AK-47, equipped with military combat uniforms and boots in Mogadishu, and participated in training camps in Kismaayo and Jilib, Somalia. The camps included physical fitness, firearms and explosives training, all in preparation to go to the
front to fight for the ICU. Al Qaeda members were present at the training camps. ICU and Al Qaeda, a recognized foreign terrorist organization, worked together to train fighters in the camps to fight jihad to establish an independent Islamic state in Somalia.
Maldonado was captured by Kenyan military forces on January 21, as he fled to avoid Ethiopian and Somalian forces. Expelled by Kenyan officials, Maldonado was turned over to American authorities and flown to Houston accompanied by Special Agents of the FBI. Maldonado has been in federal custody since his return to the United States.
Bookmark http://universeeverything.blogspot.com/ and drop back in sometime.
Labels: al Qaeda, FBI, jihad, Maldonado, Somalia, terrorism, terrorist
posted by Scott Nance at
7/23/2007 11:23:00 AM
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