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Judge Hands Down 4 Year Sentence To 'Jihad Shannon'

DENVER (CBS4) - An Arvada teenager who wanted to wage jihad with ISIS and move to the Middle East has been sentenced to four years in federal prison.

FBI agents caught Shannon Conley, 19, at the Denver International Airport trying to board a flight to Turkey. The teen, who has been dubbed "Jihad Shannon," wanted to marry a Syrian man and then help with the fight against infidels.

Conley had stated plans to work as a cook or nurse's aide at an ISIS camp after marrying a man in Syria she met online.

Shannon Conley
Shannon Conley (credit: Rosita Colson/Facebook)

The FBI says they took extraordinary measures to try to get Conley to rethink those plans. They visited her often, suggested other alternatives to express her beliefs, and even asked her parents to talk her out of it.

But when that didn't work and they caught her instead trying to board a flight to the Middle East in April to reportedly join terrorists, Conley was arrested.

She later pled guilty to conspiracy to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization. Conley's lawyer said the girl was misled while exploring her faith.

Conley had faced a maximum five years in jail.

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