Army Vet Fighting in Syria Gets Plea Deal
An Army veteran accused of fighting alongside an al-Qaida-affiliated group of Syrian rebels has been released from jail following a secret plea deal.
Eric Harroun, 31, of Phoenix, had been charged with providing material support to a terrorist group and faced up to life in prison.
But under a plea agreement entered Thursday in U.S. District Court in Alexandria, Harroun pleaded guilty to an obscure law regulating export of munitions. He was sentenced to time served. He had been jailed since returning to the U.S. in March.
Prosecutors first accused Harroun of fighting alongside the terrorist group Jabhat al-Nusra, one of many Syrian rebel groups seeking to topple President Bashar Assad. But defense lawyers argued there was confusion about which rebel group Harroun had joined.
http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/army-vet-fought-syria-plea-deal-20319584