New York: ISIS recruiter, initially given a lenient sentence, continued contacting jihadists and now faces 70 years in prison

Image: Jihad Watch

A former New Yorker turned ISIS recruiter, known as "Umm Nuteella," now faces up to 70 years in prison after an appeals court overturned her initial 48-month sentence, deeming it "shockingly low" for her role in aiding the terrorist organization.

Sinmyah Ceasar, 29, allegedly continued to communicate with terrorist contacts and even solicited funds for an ISIS supporter while on supervised release following her earlier imprisonment, according to Brooklyn federal prosecutors.

“There is no other terrorism defendant who compares to the defendant’s history of recidivism, and her continued defiance of the lawful authority of the Court,” prosecutors stated in a memo ahead of her re-sentencing.

Ceasar had been controversially sentenced to just four years in prison by the late Judge Jack Weinstein in 2019. Weinstein argued that Ceasar needed education and mental health support to help her “as a human being.”

Ceasar had faced a potential life sentence after pleading guilty to providing material support to ISIS and obstructing justice. However, she served a reduced sentence and was released in July 2020 to begin eight years of supervised release.

In August 2021, the 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that her initial sentence was too lenient and ordered a re-sentencing.

Following this, Ceasar skipped a court appearance on August 25, 2021, and attempted to flee to Russia by cutting off her ankle bracelet to avoid returning to prison. She was apprehended days later at an auto body shop in New Mexico.

Ceasar’s defense team cited her childhood trauma and PTSD, claiming she had been raped as a child.

(This Article was originally published by Jihad Watch)