Twin brothers in South Africa have been convicted and jailed for plotting terrorist attacks on the U.S. embassy in Pretoria and Jewish institutions, and for planning to join the Islamic State terrorist group, according to local media.
On Monday, the Johannesburg High Court sentenced Tony-Lee Thulsie to 11 years in prison and Brandon-Lee Thulsie to eight years. However, because they have been jailed awaiting trial since July 2016, Tony-Lee will serve roughly five years and Brandon-Lee about two, reported a local publication.
The South African brothers, 28, pleaded guilty earlier in the day as part of a plea bargain with the prosecution. They pleaded guilty to planning to travel to Syria to join ISIS and to downloading ISIS literature online, including instructions on how to acquire weapons and make bombs. Tony-Lee also admitted to planning a terrorist attack in South Africa.
The brothers also planned attacks on U.S., British, Russian and/or French diplomats in Pretoria, according to the prosecution.
The pair was arrested in South Africa in July 2016 and have been in custody since then. Back in 2017, the United States added them to its terror blacklist.
