A U.S. Army soldier who mulled d a suicide attack on his own base pleaded guilty Wednesday to four counts of providing material support to the Islamic State, the Department of Justice said.
Ikaika Erik Kang, 35, a Sergeant First Class, was stationed at Schofield Barracks near Honolulu, will serve 25 years in prison followed by the possibility of a lifetime supervised release under the plea agreement.
Kang’s sentencing is scheduled for December 12.
“King swore to defend the United States as a member of our military, but betrayed his country by swearing allegiance to ISIS and attempting to provide material support to the foreign terrorist organization,” said Assistant Attorney General John Demers. “With today’s plea, he will be held accountable for his crimes.”
Court documents say Kang told a confidential source that he planned to stay in the military long enough to be promoted to sergeant first class, move to the Middle East and join the Islamic State, better known by the acronym ISIS. He also allegedly told a confidential source that if he became a member of the Islamic State, he would launch a suicide attack on Schofield Barracks.
Prosecutors accused Kang of trying to provide the Islamic State with a training video of fighting techniques, classified U.S. military documents and military gear, including tactical equipment and ammunition. Kang is also accused of trying to provide the Islamic State with a camera-equipped commercially available drone.
However, Kang did not actually provide the Islamic State with any materials because the people he was with were uncovered FBI agents, not Islamic State sympathizers.
The documents Kang provided to the agents included classified air traffic control documents that describe call signs, aircraft types, route points, radio frequencies and procedures; the military’s “weapons file” which describes the armament capabilities of U.S. armed forces; and sensitive materials containing personally identifiable information of U.S. service members.
Kang became radicalized by at least 2016, regularly watching ISS propaganda and training videos, the Justice Department said. He is also alleged to have made numerous statements in support of the Islamic State.
The Joint Terrorism Task Force, the FBI and the U.S. Army Criminal Investigative Division investigated the case.
• Jeff Mordock can be reached at jmordock@washingtontimes.com.
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