A Kansas native has been arrested after allegedly putting together and leading an all-female battalion for the terrorist organization ISIS, according to the Justice Department.
The woman, Allison Fluke-Ekren, was apprehended in Syria and then placed in the custody of the FBI on Friday, according to a Justice Department news release.
Fluke-Ekren, 42, is now facing federal charges of providing and conspiring to provide material support or resources to a foreign terrorist organization.
A criminal complaint filed in 2019, made public after her arrest, alleged that she joined the terrorist organization in 2014. It also said that she conducted multiple terrorism-related activities on behalf of ISIS from 2014 to 2017.
In 2016 Fluke-Ekren allegedly began leading the group of female ISIS members who were married to male ISIS fighters, the news release from the Justice Department said.
Fluke-Ekren herself was married to an ISIS fighter who died in an airstrike while he was attempting to carry out a terrorist attack in Syria. She then remarried another ISIS member known for working with drones, the complaint said.
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The complaint went on to say that she planned an attack on a U.S. college campus and trained women and children on how to use guns and bombs.
Eyewitness accounts from six individuals claimed to have seen Fluke-Ekren’s activities and are all detailed on the complaint. She is also believed to have translated an extremist doctrine, as she is fluent in English and Arabic.
The witnesses claimed to have observed Fluke-Ekren discussing her intention to conduct a terrorist attack on a U.S. shopping center. Fluke-Ekren reportedly wanted to park a vehicle of explosives in the basement of the building, denoting it with a cell phone triggering device, authorities reported.
Currently, Fluke-Ekren does not have any attorneys listed on her behalf and is expected to have one appointed to her Monday.
Fluke-Ekren will appear in federal court in Virginia on Monday, and if she is convicted, she will face a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, the Justice Department said.
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