BY DARRELL HALEN

A former Pelham High School student who was convicted of receiving training from a foreign terrorist organization was sentenced to 10 years in prison.

Daniel Joseph Maldonado, a U.S. citizen and Muslim convert, was given the maximum penalty for the crime in a federal courthouse in Houston on July 20.

Three months ago, Maldonado, 28, pleaded guilty, admitting that he traveled to Somalia in late 2006 to join the Islamic Courts Union and elements of al-Qaida.

He did so, according to prosecutors, to fight “jihad” against the Transitional Federal Government to establish an Islamic state in Somalia.

Maldonado was equipped with an AK-47 and military combat boots, and participated in training camps which included firearms and explosives training where al-Qaida members were present, according to prosecutors.

“By attending a terrorist training camp, Daniel Maldonado betrayed his country and endangered the national security of the United States and its allies with his support of the ICU and al-Qaida,” said Joseph Billy Jr., assistant director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Counterterrorism Division, in a statement.

Maldonado was captured by Kenyan military forces in early 2007 as he fled to avoid Ethiopian and Somalian forces and was turned over to U.S. custody.

Maldonado, also known as Daniel Aljughaifi, will be on supervised release for three years after he’s released from prison. He was fined $1,000.

“We cannot tolerate our own citizens joining the ranks of our enemies and foreign terrorists,” said Kenneth Wainstein, Assistant Attorney General for National Security, in a statement. “Any American who does so can expect swift prosecution and a severe sentence.”

At Pelham High, Maldonado was known for his appearance –  he wore his hair in dreadlocks –  and for strong opinions, Dorothy Mohr, the school’s principal, said earlier this year after he was arrested.