Two men accused of seeking to join al Qaeda and training to carry out attacks on U.S. military bases and personnel in the Middle East were convicted on federal charges in California Thursday after a trial of more than six weeks, prosecutors said.
A U.S. District Court jury in Riverside, California, found Sohiel Omar Kabir, 36, guilty of conspiring to provide material support and resources to al Qaeda and conspiring to kill officers and employees of the U.S. government.
The same jury convicted 25-year-old Ralph Deleon of the same charges, as well as with conspiracy to commit murder, kidnapping or maiming overseas.
Jurors acquitted Kabir of conspiring to commit murder, kidnapping, or maiming overseas and was unable to reach unanimous verdicts on two other charges against Deleon. Both men face maximum sentences of life in prison without the possibility of parole when they are sentenced in February.
"This case shows that the appeal of extremist ideologies can reach from Afghanistan to America, demonstrating the clear need for continued vigilance in rooting out homegrown violent extremists who plot terrorist acts both here and abroad," U.S. Attorney Stephanie Yonekura said in a statement released after the verdicts were returned.
Prosecutors say trial evidence showed that Kabir introduced Deleon and another defendant, Miguel Alejandro Santana Vidriales, to radical Islamist theology in 2010 and, after traveling to Afghanistan in 2012, encouraged them to follow him there to join al Qaeda.
Later that year, Deleon and Santana recruited a fourth defendant, Arifeen David Gojali, to join them overseas to commit violent jihad, according to prosecutors.
Santana, Deleon and Gojali trained at firearms and paint ball facilities in Southern California to prepare, prosecutors say. Deleon, Santana and Gojali were arrested by the FBI in November 2012 while planning to drive to Mexico, from where they would fly to Afghanistan. Kabir was taken into custody by U.S. military personnel in Afghanistan.
Santana and Gojali previously pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing.
Kabir, who was born in Afghanistan, is a naturalized U.S. citizen. Deleon is a lawful permanent resident and citizen of the Philippines.
