Connecticut man sentenced to prison for trying to join ISIS in Syria

A Connecticut man has been sentenced to more than seven years in prison for trying to travel to Syria to join ISIS, according to federal prosecutors. He was arrested after arriving at a coastal town where he expected to board a boat to begin the trip.

Ahmad Khalil Elshazly, 29, of West Haven, was sentenced on Monday to 92 months in prison and lifetime supervised release in Connecticut, according to the U.S. Justice Department. He pleaded guilty in November 2022 to attempting to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization.

Beginning around September 2018, the U.S. citizen expressed a desire to travel to Syria to fight for ISIS. In conversations online and in person, he pledged allegiance to the group and its then-leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, according to prosecutors.

After al-Baghdadi’s death in October 2019, he sent a message pledging allegiance to the group’s new leader. He also created and ran a pro-ISIS server on the messaging platform Discord, where he posted hundreds of extremist propaganda memes and videos.

On December 14, 2019, he paid $500 to someone he believed was an ISIS facilitator who could smuggle him out of the United States to Turkey. From there, he expected to connect with an ISIS member who would help him reach the group in Syria.

He was arrested the following day after arriving in Stonington, Connecticut, where he expected to board a boat. He has remained in custody since then.

Prosecutors said he committed numerous disciplinary violations while detained. During a search of his cell in August 2025, officers found a handwritten plan for a coordinated uprising at the detention facility.

The plan included diagrams of the housing unit, instructions for breaking into secured areas and tactics for confronting the facility’s emergency response team, according to the Justice Department.

The post Connecticut man sentenced to prison for trying to join ISIS in Syria appeared first on BNO News.

Ella Rae Greene, Editor In Chief

Ella Greene

Ella and the staff at Clear Media Project (CMP) curate these articles.
Unless otherwise noted CMP does not write these articles.
The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed in the articles published on this blog belong solely to the original authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the blog owner. The blog owner does not claim ownership of the content shared by contributors and is not responsible for any inaccuracies, errors, or omissions.

All rights and credits goes to its rightful owners. No Copyright Infringement is intended. If you believe any content infringes on your rights, please contact us for review and potential removal.

See author's posts