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Ohio Man Convicted of Terrorism Offenses After Trying to Join ISIS

Laith Waleed Alebbini, 28, of Dayton, Ohio, was convicted today for attempting and conspiring to join the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS), a designated foreign terrorist organization.

Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers, U.S. Attorney Benjamin C. Glassman for the Southern District of Ohio, Special Agent in Charge Todd Wickerham of the FBI’s Cincinnati Division and other members of the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF) announced the guilty verdict.

U.S. District Judge Walter H. Rice returned a guilty verdict today following a bench trial that started on Nov. 13, convicting Alebbini of one count of attempting to provide material support and resources to ISIS, and one count of conspiring to do the same.  Alebbini attempted and conspired to provide material support and resources to ISIS in the form of personnel, namely himself.

Alebbini, a citizen of Jordan and a U.S. legal permanent resident, was arrested by the FBI on April 26, 2017, at the Cincinnati/Kentucky International Airport, as he approached the TSA security checkpoint.  Alebbini waived his right to trial by jury, and the case proceeded to trial before the Court.  The evidence at trial showed that at the time of his arrest, Alebbini had a ticket and boarding passes in hand for a flight to Amnan, Jordan, with a connection in Istanbul, Turkey.  The evidence also showed that Alebbini intended to step off the plane once in Istanbul, forego the flight to Amman, and instead make his way from Turkey into Syria in order to join ISIS there.

According to court documents and testimony, on April 20, 2017, during a six-hour conversation with a friend who tried to talk Alebbini out of traveling and joining ISIS, Alebbini told his friend: “I did not say the Islamic State does not cut off heads.  The Islamic State is the beheader and throat cutter…I agree with you on that…, but they still treat captives well.  The captive, before he is beheaded, is treated well, but when it’s time to behead him, he will be beheaded….But the Islamic State is fighting a survival war.  They ask people to migrate to the State.  When migrants get there…they will assign them accordingly to a…district where they will recruit them as inghimasi.  I, cousin, want to go to be an inghimasi soldier.”  As explained at trial, an “inghimasi soldier” is a particularly lethal type of suicide bomber – one who seeks to cause as much death and destruction as possible prior to detonation.  Alebbini told a relative days later:  “I am now ready to migrate.”

In a message exchange on April 26, 2017, about an hour before Alebbini arrived at the Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky airport, another relative pleaded with Alebbini not to travel.  Alebbini responded in three separate back-to-back messages:  “Do you think I am a criminal”  “I am a terrorist”  “I am mujahid”.

Attempting to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization, and conspiracy to do so, are each federal crimes punishable by up to 20 years in prison.  The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes.  Any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.  The Court scheduled sentencing for March 8, 2019.  After serving his sentence, Alebbini will face deportation.

Assistant Attorney General Demers and U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by the JTTF, which includes officers and agents from the FBI, U.S. Secret Service, U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement, Greene County Sheriff’s Office, Oakwood Police Department, Dayton Police Department, Cincinnati Police Department, Colerain Police Department, Ohio State Highway Patrol, University of Cincinnati Police Department, U.S. Air Force Office of Special Investigations, U.S. Internal Revenue Service, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, West Chester Police Department, and Cincinnati State Police Department.

First Assistant Vipal J. Patel, Assistant U.S. Attorney Dominick S. Gerace of the Southern District of Ohio, and Trial Attorney Justin Sher of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section prosecuted this case.

U.S. Soldier Sentenced to 25 Years in Prison for Attempting to Provide Material Support to ISIS

Ikaika Erik Kang, 35, a Sergeant First Class in the U.S. Army formerly stationed at Schofield Barracks, was sentenced today to 25 years in prison for attempting to provide material support to the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS), a designated foreign terrorist organization.  Kang was sentenced to 240 months on Counts 2, 3 and 4 to run concurrently, and 60 months on Count 1, to run consecutively, for a total of 300 months in prison.  As part of his sentence, Kang will serve 20 years of supervised release following his incarceration.

Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers, U.S. Attorney for the District of Hawaii Kenji M. Price, and Special Agent in Charge Sean L. Kaul of the FBI’s Honolulu Field Office announced the sentence.

At sentencing, Senior U.S. District Judge Susan Oki Mollway accepted a plea agreement between the United States and Kang, in which Kang had agreed to serve 25 years of imprisonment and a period of at least 20 years of supervised release and up to life.  In imposing sentence, Judge Mollway said that Kang’s conduct was “extremely serious” and “had the potential to be disastrous.”  She also noted that the undercover agents gave Kang “a number of chances to return the classified information and leave the training, but [he] didn’t do that.”

“Kang 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 it material support,” said Assistant Attorney General Demers.  “With the sentence imposed today, he is being held accountable for his betrayal and his crimes.  I want to thank all of the agents, analysts and prosecutors who are responsible for this case.” 

“Defending our country from terrorism is a core mission of the Department of Justice,” said U.S. Attorney Kenji Price.  “Today’s sentence is the result of the hard work and dedication of all of the federal agents and prosecutors who work tirelessly every day to keep our community safe.”

“This is the first case in the State of Hawaii where someone was convicted for providing material support to terrorism,” said Special Agent in Charge Kaul.  “This should serve as reminder that even though we are 2,500 miles from the U.S. Mainland these crimes can and do happen everywhere.  I would like to personally thank the United States Attorney’s Office, the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section, the United States Army, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, the Honolulu Police Department, and the entire Joint Terrorism Task Force Community here in Hawaii for bringing this investigation to a successful conclusion.  Today, our community is a safer place due to their tireless efforts.”  

According to court documents and information presented in court, Kang became sympathetic to ISIS by at least early 2016.  He regularly watched ISIS propaganda videos online, for as long as four to five hours a day, or more.  Kang made numerous statements in support of ISIS and expressed a desire to join ISIS.  He spoke approvingly and in detail about committing specific acts of violence against others, including by attacking large public gatherings, such as the Honolulu Christmas Parade, and a parade at Schofield Barracks.  At the time Kang made these statements, he owned an AR-15-style assault rifle and a pistol, both of which he kept at his residence on Oahu.

In late June and early July of 2018, Kang met numerous times with undercover FBI agents who he believed had connections to ISIS.  He provided them with sensitive, non-public military documents, some of which were classified at the SECRET level, which he intended that they later provide to ISIS.  He also provided them with a commercially-purchased small aerial drone, a military chest rig, and other military-style clothing and gear.  Kang then met two additional undercover FBI personnel, one who purported to be a high-ranking ISIS leader, or “sheikh,” and another who played the role of an ISIS fighter.  Kang led them in a two-hour, step-by-step military combatives training session, in order to train the purported ISIS member in hand-to-hand fighting techniques and marksmanship.

Kang was given numerous opportunities by the undercover agents to return the classified military documents, and to stop and leave the training, which he did not do.  Instead, on July 8, 2017, Kang swore an oath of loyalty, known as “bayat,” to ISIS and its leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, in a ceremony conducted by the purported ISIS sheikh.  After the ceremony, Kang said that he wanted to get his rifle and go to downtown Honolulu and Waikiki strip and start shooting.  Kang was subsequently arrested and taken into custody.

The case was investigated by the Joint Terrorism Task Force in Honolulu, the FBI, and the U.S. Army, Criminal Investigative Division.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kenneth M. Sorenson and Marc A. Wallenstein of the District of Hawaii, and Trial Attorney Taryn M. Meeks of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section.