NEW YORK — A New York man pleaded guilty on Tuesday to attempting to join the militant group al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, considered to be one of the most active wings of the network, prosecutors said.

Marcos Alonso Zea, 26, was arrested last October at his Long Island home in a joint investigation by local and federal authorities, several months after attempting to travel to Yemen.

Zea previously pleaded not guilty to charges that included trying to materially aid al Qaeda, but changed his plea as part of a deal that would sentence him to up to 25 years in prison, said Zugiel Soto, spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York.

He initially faced five criminal counts, including conspiracy to commit murder in a foreign country, two counts of trying to provide support to terrorists or terrorist organizations and two counts of obstruction.

Zea pleaded guilty to one count of obstruction and one count of material support of terrorism.

Prosecutors said Zea attempted to fly from New York to Yemen in January 2012, but was intercepted by British customs officials while changing planes and returned to the United States.

During a raid of his house, prosecutors said, copies of al Qaeda’s “Inspire” magazines were found on his computer as well as other electronic evidence indicating al Qaeda ties.

Investigators also recovered a semi-automatic rifle Zea had given to an acquaintance in advance of his planned trip to Yemen, prosecutors said.

Zea, who was raised Roman Catholic, converted to Islam after traveling to London in 2012 and began attending a mosque in his hometown of Brentwood, New York, about 50 miles east of Manhattan, his parents said shortly after his arrest.