Woman, 35, who sent $500 gift cards to undercover FBI agents who she thought were al-Qaeda members to buy rifle scopes to ‘kill American soldiers’ is arrested at a Phoenix airport trying to fly to the Middle East
- Jill Marie Jones, a 35-year-old from Chandler, Arizona, was charged with attempting to provide material support to al-Qaeda
- Jones was arrested at the Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport on Wednesday after she had checked in for her flight
- The criminal complaint states that Jones was in talks with two undercover FBI agents, one who Marie believed to be a member of al-Qaeda
- She gave the purported member $500 using a prepaid gift card ‘to purchase scopes for rifles that would be used by al-Qaeda to kill American soldiers’
A 35-year-old Arizona woman has been arrested at the Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport on Wednesday after she allegedly tried to join al-Qaeda and send them money ‘to purchase scopes for rifles’ that would be used to ‘kill American soldiers,’ according to a criminal complaint.
Jill Marie Jones, an American Citizen from Chandler, Arizona, was charged with attempting to provide material support to the designated foreign terrorist organization, according to a release from the Department of Justice.
The criminal complaint states that Jones was in talks with two undercover FBI agents, one who Marie believed to be a member of al-Qaeda.
While in communication with the two, Jones agreed to send the FBI employees money ‘to purchase scopes for rifles that would be used by al-Qaeda to kill American soldiers.’
Jill Marie Jones, a 35-year-old from Chandler, Arizona, was charged with attempting to provide material support to al-Qaeda after she was arrested at the Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport on Wednesday
Jones gave the purported al-Qaeda member $500 using a prepaid gift card, according to the complaint obtained by DailyMail.com.
The woman is described in the complaint as having ‘espoused violence in furtherance of Islamic extremist ideology’ while also being in support of ‘jihad, Sharia Law, and retaliation against the United States military and government actions occurring outside of the United States.’
Jones first contacted one of the FBI agents on March 4 and by April 15 was telling the undercover employee that if her stimulus check was bigger, she would use it to leave the United States.
By May she was already introduced to the second FBI agent and was confirmed with him that ‘supporting AQ against the oppressors would be an honor.’
On May 18, after exchanging a back-and-forth about al-Qeada killers who were killed, Jones is said to have responded that she could have acted at a base near her but ‘my power is limited here.’
She also suggested that doing such an attack would only bring more ‘harassment’ for her ‘brothers and sisters here.’
Jones was prepared to go overseas to assist al-Qeada, purchasing tickets to fly overseas to join them in Afghanistan, according to the complaint. But due to closures, Jones was forced to change her flights to go to Turkey.
From there, she planned to go to Syria.
Jones was arrested just moments after she checked into her flight at the airport to LAX. She made it through security before she was arrested.
The prosecution is being handled by Lisa Jennis, Assistant U.S. Attorney in the District of Arizona and Katie Sweeten, trial attorney with the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section.