A U.S. woman who called herself "Jihad Jane" online pleaded guilty Tuesday on terrorism-related charges, Xinhua reported.
Colleen LaRose, 47, a resident of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty on four charges: conspiracy to support terrorists, plotting to kill in a foreign country, lying to investigators and attempted identity theft. She is facing a possible life imprisonment under those charges.
LaRose was accused with co-conspirators of recruiting men on the internet to wage violent Jihad in South Asia and Europe. She was also charged with agreeing to kill a Swedish citizen on orders from the terrorists.
"Today's guilty plea, by a woman from suburban America who plotted with others to commit murder overseas and to provide material support to terrorists, underscores the evolving nature of the threat we face," said Assistant U.S. Attorney General David Kris.
Home-grown terrorism has drawn more attention from the U.S. intelligence community and law enforcement agencies, as terrorist groups have redoubled their efforts to recruit native Americans to carry out attacks.
"Historically, our domestic counterterrorism efforts were based on the belief that we faced the greatest risk from attacks planned, and carried out, by individuals coming from abroad," U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said last week in her State of America's Homeland Security address.
"Today, we operate under the premise that individuals prepared to carry out terrorist acts might already be in the country, and could carry out further acts of terrorist violence with little or no warning," she said.