In one of the most bizarre stories you’ll ever hear, a young couple in Mississippi was arrested after their post -marriage plot of taking a honeymoon to join ISIS was foiled.
20-year-old Jaelyn Delshaun Young and 22-year-old Muhammad Oda Dakhlalla are the names of the couple and former Mississippi State University students. They are the son of a local imam and daughter of a police officer. Young once allegedly wrote about the plot: “”Our story will be that we are newlyweds on our honeymoon.” That honeymoon was however a trip to Europe then to Syria to join ISIS.
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Months of communication through Facebook to an undercover FBI agent lead to their arrest.
According to CNN here is what else we know from court documents:
— Young wrote of her plans to marry Dakhlalla so the two could travel to Syria together. She confirmed that the wedding took place in June, and said the couple’s cover story would be that they were flying to Europe on their honeymoon. To avoid suspicion, “We won’t be flying to Istanbul. We will fly to a different country and take a bus.”
— The couple described their skills and asked how they could help the terror group’s efforts. “I am good with computers, education and media,” Dakhlalla allegedly wrote in one message to an FBI employee. “What could I contribute?” Young also allegedly told an undercover FBI agent that her skills would be useful. “I am skilled in math and chemistry and worked at an analytical lab here on my college campus. My partner is very good with things like computer science/media. We learn very fast and would love to help with giving medical aid.”
— In messages detailed in the complaint, the couple seemed enthusiastic, but also concerned about how training would work once they arrived. “Salaam again,” Dakhlalla allegedly wrote in a message to an FBI employee. “I wanted to ask about the military experience there. Would I be with people that speak English as well or do they put me with everyone at basic training? I am excited about coming … but I feel I won’t know what all I will be doing.”
— Young allegedly praised the July 16 attacks at military centers in Chattanooga, Tennessee, in which four Marines and a sailor were killed. “The numbers of supporters are growing,” she said in a message, according to the complaint.
— In August, just days before the couple allegedly planned to begin their journey, Young allegedly wrote that it should be easy to make it past security at the Mississippi airport. “We will be flying direct. We live in a small town with a very small (poor) airport that doesn’t have much, if any, security. … That’s one U.S. weakness — small towns’ airports have poor funding and less educated staff so it is easier to get through.”
— Last week, the couple allegedly bought plane tickets to fly from Columbus, Mississippi, to Istanbul. Authorities arrested them Saturday at the Mississippi airport, and both “confessed to attempting to travel to Turkey to join ISIS,” according to the complaint.
Are there more couples out there like these two? Do you think their friends at Mississippi State should have spoken up? Sound off in the comments below!
