patrick.net

A 24-year-old Syrian immigrant pleaded guilty Thursday to lying to the FBI about his links to the Islamic State terror group.

As part of a plea bargain with federal prosecutors in San Diego, Mohamad Saeed Kodaimati agreed to a prison sentence of eight years.

Saeed admitted that he went to Turkey from San Diego in late 2012 and then to Syria, where he met Islamic State and Al Nusra fighters. He was questioned by U.S. authorities in Ankara, Turkey, and then when he returned to San Diego in March.

Saeed lied to agents from the FBI, Customs and Border Protection and the State Department when he said he had not been involved in fighting in Syria, did not know any Islamic State fighters and had never been involved in a sharia court, according to court documents.