Watch CBS News

12-Year-Prison Sentence For Man Who Tried To Support ISIS In Syria

SACRAMENTO (CBS/AP) -- A federal judge in Sacramento has sentenced a man to 12 years in prison for his conviction in a case alleging he tried to join Islamic extremists in Syria.

U.S. District Court Judge John Mendez said on Tuesday that terrorism had become a zero-tolerance crime, as he issued the sentence against 22-year-old Nicholas Teausant.

Teausant pleaded guilty in December to one count of attempting to provide material support or resources to a foreign terrorist organization.

Teausant was arrested in March 2014 in Washington state. Authorities said he planned to travel to Canada and then on to Syria to join the Islamic State group and discussed his plans with a friend who was actually an FBI informant.

Teausant's lawyers said he had a mental illness that made him vulnerable to the informant.

© Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.