(Reuters) A Frenchman who converted to Islam and went abroad to fight for Islamic State was sentenced by a Paris court on Friday to 30 years in prison in France’s first successful prosecution of an Islamist militant for crimes committed in Syria.
Tyler Vilus, 30, was arrested in Turkey five years ago as he prepared to catch a flight to Prague. Prosecutors told the court he wanted to lead the squad of gunmen and suicide bombers which attacked Paris in November 2015, but were unable to prove this.
The judges ruled the sentence carried a minimum 20 years in jail.
“By not choosing a life sentence, the court decided to leave you a glimmer of hope for you to evolve,” chief judge Laurent Raviot said.
