Calgary man pleads guilty to terrorism charges
A Calgary man has pleaded guilty to two terrorism-related charges after travelling to fight with the Islamic State in Syria in 2013.
Hussein Sobhe Borhot, 36, sat quietly in a black sweatshirt in a Calgary courtroom as details of his time in Syria were read aloud by the crown prosecution.
He pleaded guilty to one count of participating in terrorism group activity and one count of kidnapping for a terrorist group.
Borhot was arrested in 2020 following a seven-year investigation into his activities in Syria by Alberta RCMP.
In an agreed statement of fact, Borhot admitted to travelling from Calgary to Turkey in May of 2013. He then took a long taxi to the Turkish border and was smuggled into Syria to join ISIS.
The man admitted that he initially joined the Islamic State with the intention of being a suicide bomber, but changed his mind and became a fighter instead.
Borhot returned to Calgary via Turkey in June of 2014.
Borhot was the subject of two RCMP undercover operations when he returned to Canada. An undercover operative befriended Borhot at a Mosque and they continued conversations for several years.
"I agree. I didn't know better, but I agree," Borhot said when asked by the judge whether he agreed to the statement of facts as read in court.
Borhot is not in custody.
He will remain free until sentencing and will have to abide to the same conditions he was subject to while out on bail, including wearing an ankle monitor and remaining in Alberta.
Sentencing is scheduled for May 26.
Correction
The original version of this story indicated Borhot's age was 34. He is currently 36 years old.
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