FBI agents discuss Shelton Bell anti-terrorism case

21-year-old sentenced to 20 years in federal prison, lifetime of supervision

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Federal agents said a Jacksonville man sentenced Wednesday to 20 years in federal prison was a danger to the country's national security -- a radical who was willing to kill for the cause.

"There is no city that is safe from anybody that has an ideology like this," said Lawrence Koleff, assistant special agent in charge of the FBI's Jacksonville field house. "Radical Islam is being spread across the board, whether it be the Internet, social media. It could happen here in Jacksonville as you see."

FBI agents said 21-year-old Shelton Bell trained to fight with terrorist groups in the Middle East, but they caught him before he could commit any acts of terror. U.S. District Judge Timothy Corrigan sentenced Bell to 20 years in federal prison and a lifetime of supervision.

Bell, who was arrested in 2012 and pleaded guilty two years later, faced up to 30 years behind bars.

FBI agents spoke exclusively to News4Jax the day after Bell's sentencing and said Bell was 100 percent invested in the cause. The Jacksonville native is what they called a "homegrown violent extremist." Videos gathered as part of the investigation show Bell knew what he was doing and that he was trying to recruit other young people to join the Jihad, investigators said.

IMAGES: Pictures FBI found on Bell's computer

Bell's home videos show him setting off bombs in the woods in Jacksonville -- frag grenades he made at home. In another clip, he's at target practice with two other young men.

Later, Bell documented his travel to the Middle East in hopes of joining the Jihad -- the holy war for radical Islam. He went with a juvenile, who's also been prosecuted. Officials in Jordan caught them before they could join any terrorist groups and deported them back to the U.S., into the hands of the FBI.

"We have somebody who understands the U.S., understands the way we do business here, and certainly with that kind of radical ideology, I just don't know what sets a person like that off," Koleff said. "They are a danger to everybody."

Koleff said he's glad to see Bell's case finally closed with a 20-year prison sentence.

"We had a very bad individual that we were able to identify and the case concluded with a sentence that was a reasonable sentence," Koleff said "It was great."

In one of Bell's home videos, he talks about fighting for Allah.

"We should not deviate from the straight path," Bell says in the video. "Yes, fighting is included. Your lives may be at stake. But what is more noble than fighting for the cause of Allah alone?"

Koleff said Bell was dangerous.

"He had access to the weapons and he had access to the understanding of how to make explosives," Koleff said. "I would call that capable of being able to commit his threat."

In the videos, Bell references that federal agents could be watching him. And in a phone conversation recorded by a tap, after Bell and the juvenile returned from the Middle East, Bell tells the juvenile to keep quiet.

"So if the FBI comes and talks to you, just say, 'I have the right to remain silent.' Ha ha," Bell said.

Anti-terrorism agents had been keeping a close eye on them and knew everywhere they went. The agents built their case and arrested the pair months later.

"There is always that possibility (that he could have killed someone if agents hadn't stopped him)," Koleff said. "The concern is that once a person is committed and they have that commitment, you don't know what's going to cause them and what the time is going to be for them to go ahead and commit an act of Jihad -- whether they do it here or anywhere else. So certainly the entire community was at risk for somebody like that to do something very egregious."

The FBI said there is no city safe from a person with an ideology like this. FBI officials were concerned that he had shown his devotion to, his commitment to, the radical nature of his beliefs.

During one of his sentencing hearings, Bell apologized, saying he wasn't thinking about the consequences of his actions. He said he wanted to turn his life around and eventually help the government prevent terrorism.

But the judge wrote a 40-page order explaining why he felt Bell should spend the next 20 years behind bars.

News4Jax spoke with a former member of the board at the Islamic Center of Northeast Florida, who confirmed Bell's radical activities provoked their response, asking authorities to get involved.


About the Author:

Kent Justice co-anchors News4Jax's 5 p.m., 10 and 11 p.m. newscasts weeknights and reports on government and politics. He also hosts "This Week in Jacksonville," Channel 4's hot topics and politics public affairs show each Sunday morning at 9 a.m.