Chicago-area teen accused of trying to join al-Qaida-linked group to appear in federal court
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}An 18-year-old who allegedly visited a sham FBI website to express interest in joining an al-Qaida-affiliated group in Syria is set to appear in a Chicago federal court.
Abdella Ahmad Tounisi's appearance Tuesday follows his arrest at O'Hare International Airport as he prepared to board a plane.
The Aurora teenager allegedly wrote to an FBI agent posing as a terrorist recruiter that he was willing to die but had no fighting experience.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}He's charged with attempting to provide material support to terrorism.
The complaint says Tounisi's a friend of Chicago-area teen Adel Daoud. Daoud is awaiting trial on charges he tried to detonate what he thought was a bomb last year outside a Chicago bar.
Tounisi's father, Ahmad Tounisi, has said his son would not have done what authorities allege.