Biography
Connected to the Virginia jihad network, a group of men who played paintball as a means to train for combat under the guidance of controversial imam Ali al-Timimi, Sabri Benkahla lied to authorities about training with militants in Pakistan, made other false statements, and obstructed justice in the Virginia jihad trial. Benkahla was acquitted at trial of fighting for the Taliban, and after his acquittal, federal prosecutors filed perjury charges, for which he was convicted.
Case characteristics: FBI confidential informant, FISA surveillance. Organization referenced in charging documents: Taliban.
Case data and description from The Intercept's Trial and Terror project (Trevor Aaronson and Margot Williams), licensed CC BY-NC. Source: https://github.com/theintercept/trial-and-terror-data
