Crime & Safety

Nearby: Long Island Man Arrested for Allegedly Attempting to Join Al-Qaeda

Marcos Alonzo Zea, 25, of Brentwood was arrested by FBI agents on Friday morning.

A second Long Island man faces federal charges for allegedly attempting to join al-Qaeda to "to wage violent jihad" in 2012, according to the United States Department of Justice.  

Marcos Alonso Zea, 25, was arrested by FBI agents at his Brentwood home on Friday morning. Zea, also known as "Ali Zea," faces five charges including conspiracy to commit murder in a foreign country, attempting to provide material support to terrorists, attempting to provide material support to al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, according to the U.S. Justice Department.

Zea was arrested in his Brentwood home this morning and will be arraigned at the United States Federal Courthouse in Central Islip later today 

“Despite being born and raised in the United States, Zea allegedly betrayed his country and attempted to travel to Yemen in order to join a terrorist organization and commit murder,” Lynch said in a statement. “When that plan was thwarted, Zea continued to support terrorism by assisting his co-conspirator’s efforts to travel to Yemen to fight violent jihad."

According to a statement from U.S. Justice Department, Zea flew from JFK Airport  on Jan. 4, 2012 to London on route to Yemen in hopes of joining up with al-Qeada, also known as Ansar al-Sharia. He was caught by British customs officials and sent back to the United States.

Zea is accused of helping fund teenager Justin Kaliebe, of Bay Shore and Babylon, giving him money for traveling to Yemen and teaching him how to avoid electronic surveillance, according to the U.S. Justice Department. 

Kaliebe pled guilty in February to one count of attempting to provide material support to a terrorist organization and one count of attempting to provide material evidence to support al-Qaeda. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Dec. 6 in Central Islip courts. 

The FGI agents said Zea, after learning he was under surveillance in April 2013, asked an associate to have his computer's hard drive erased and attempted to destroy two other hard drives.

Despite his efforts, prosecutors said these hard drives were obtained and found to contain "an assortment of violent Islamic extremist materials" including a video made by the right-wing of al-Qaeda depicting an explosive device detonating on a vehicle carrying western personnel. 

The case against Zea will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Seth D. DuCharme, John J. Durham, and Michael P. Canty, with assistance provided by Trial Attorney Kelli Andrews of the Counterterrorism Section of the Department of Justice.


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