Isa Giga, 32, formerly living in Hounslow in West London, was arrested at Heathrow Airport last year on May 23 following a flight from Turkey.
The 32-year-old was arrested following an investigation led by the force’s Counter Terrorism Command.
In 2018, police were notified that Giga had travelled to Syria via Turkey to fight for the group Jaysh Al Fath, part of an alliance of Islamist armed factions fighting in the Syrian civil war.
In court, the jury heard Giga flew from Heathrow to Istanbul on September 7, 2015 before taking a connecting flight to Southern Turkey and then crossing the border into Syria.
Evidence, including emails and social messages from Giga’s family, which proved he had travelled to Syria to ‘fight for Jihad’, were gathered by the force along with flight passenger records matching his bank account.
Evidence also was gathered by police with the use of an undercover officer who had been messaging Giga in 2016.
Giga explains how he “never knew about jihad until 2015” when ISIS took control of parts of Syria.
Giga also said he supported ‘Nusra’, part of the Jaysh Al Fath group, and ‘wanted martyrdom very soon in the first row’ (the battlefield in Syria).
Giga was convicted on July 18 under the Terrorism Act (2006) following a two-week trial at the Old Bailey and was later sentenced on October 17 to nine years in prison.
Commander Dominic Murphy, head of the Met’s Counter Terrorism Command, said: “Anyone who returns to the UK after fighting for a terrorist group will be thoroughly investigated, no matter how long it has been since they left the country.
“We work very closely with other partners and agencies here in the UK and overseas in order to identify these individuals and keep the public safe.
“A Terrorism Act conviction will also be followed by strict notification requirements, ensuring we can monitor offenders closely, even after they are released from prison.”
