Story Created:
Mar 10, 2010 at 1:50 PM CDT
Story Updated:
Mar 10, 2010 at 3:08 PM CDT
March 9, 2010
A woman with strong ties to the Coastal Bend is being called the new face of terror.
New details are emerging about the woman known as Jihad Jane, 46 year old Colleen LaRose who is under arrest today.
She at one time lives in Corpus Christi at addresses that include, a home on Timberline Circle in Annaville, also a trailer park on Leopard in Annaville, and most recently, a post office box in the 78460 zip code.
She is accused of using the Internet to recruit people to commit acts of terrorism. Colleen LaRose was born in San Angelo Texas. She now has been living in Pennsylvania, but before moving to that state, she had three addresses right here in Corpus Christi. One address was recent as 2007. Experts say that terrorists have figured out that they can't all look like Middle Eastern people. U-S officials say 46-year-old Colleen LaRose also went by the aliases "Fatima LaRose and "Jihad Jane".
Officials say she's been indicted in a plot to recruit violent jihadist fighters by using the Internet who would commit murders overseas. Officials say Muslim militants ordered her to kill Swedish cartoonist Lars Vilks after he drew Allah with the body of a dog.
The indictment says LaRose said she would make killing Viks "my goal till I achieve it or die trying." Authorities say the blond, blue-eyed LaRose was valued for her ability to blend among Europeans - and for her gender.
Experts say the whole terrorist community is looking to women as a place to expand and be able to go into places they perhaps were not able to go into previously, like this suburban Pennsylvania neighborhood, where neighbors say they had no idea what was happening in their midst.
LaRose was arrested in October. Authorities say they are disclosing the case now after wrapping up a series of arrests in Europe.
