A young Texan eager to fight and die for the Islamic State group in Syria was tricked into returning home -- and arrested today -- after receiving bogus news that his mother was sick, officials said.
Asher Abid Khan, 20, of the Houston area, made it as far as Istanbul, Turkey en route to Syria, the Justice Department said.
He was to have met up in Istanbul with a friend who also wanted to fight for Islamic State.
Khan once said "I wana die as a Shaheed [martyr]," according to a criminal complaint against him that was unsealed today.
"However, Khan's family sent him false information regarding his mother's health and he was deceived into returning home to Texas," the Justice Department said in a statement.
Khan is now charged with conspiracy to provide material support to the Islamic State group.
If convicted, he faces up to 15 years in federal prison and a USD 250,000 fine.
