Accused American ISIS leader 'highly intelligent' and 'marksman': Former friend

A Kansas woman accused of joining ISIS increasingly became more radicalized, her former friend said.

The Kansas woman who allegedly "fantasized" about committing an attack against the United States was a "highly intelligent" mom and teacher who became increasingly radicalized when she lived overseas and sowed division in her family, a former friend of hers told ABC News.

Allison Fluke-Ekren, accused of training ISIS fighters and providing support for the terrorist group, appeared briefly in federal court in Virginia Monday and was held without bail until her detention hearing later in the week. The Justice Department said Fluke-Ekren, who the friend described as a "marksman" who "liked being in charge," expressed interest in terror attacks on six occasions from 2014 to 2017, including a mall and U.S.-based university.

One former friend, who said she last spoke to Fluke-Ekren more than 10 years ago, painted a picture of a woman who was close with her family but then became increasingly radicalized. Fluke-Ekren was arrested in Syria, where she moved a decade ago and married a "prominent" ISIS leader, according to court documents.

"I told people who she was friends with in Kansas, I told them, 'This girl is radicalized,'" said the former friend, who agreed to be identified by her last name, Farouk. Farouk knew Fluke-Ekren while she lived in Kansas and then as a teacher in the Middle East.