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Second Triangle terrorism suspect pleads guilty

A son of the Johnston County man who headed up a terrorist cell pleaded guilty Tuesday to criminal conspiracy in the case.

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NEW BERN, N.C. — A son of the Johnston County man who headed up a terrorist cell pleaded guilty Tuesday to criminal conspiracy in the case.

Zakariya "Zak" Boyd, 22, pleaded guilty to conspiring to provide material support to terrorists. Three other charges were dismissed as part of a plea agreement.

Boyd will be sentenced within 90 days, when he faces up to 15 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

"This case shows extremists in this country are just as willing to do us harm as those overseas," FBI Special AGent-in-Charge Chris Briese said in a statement.

Boyd's father, Daniel Patrick Boyd, 40, pleaded guilty in February to conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists and conspiracy to commit murder in a foreign country. He is awaiting sentencing.

They were among eight men indicted almost two years ago on charges of plotting terrorist activities and working to support terrorism. Seven of the men, including Daniel Boyd's other son, Dylan Boyd, 23, were taken into custody after the indictment.

The eighth suspect is believed to be in Pakistan. A ninth suspect was arrested in Kosovo a year ago.

Prosecutors said Zak Boyd and others prepared themselves to engage in "violent jihad" and were willing to die as martyrs. The men offered training in weapons and financing and helped arrange overseas travel and contacts so others could perform terrorist acts overseas, prosecutors said.

The FBI has said agents seized about two dozen guns and more than 27,000 rounds of ammunition from the Boyd home in Willow Springs. Authorities have previously said the men went on training expeditions in the weeks leading up to their arrest, practicing military tactics with armor-piercing bullets on a property in Caswell County.

The trials for the others charged in the case – Hysen Sherifi, 26, Mohammad Omar Aly Hassan, 23, Ziyad Yaghi, 22, and Anes Subasic, 34 – are scheduled for September.

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