The Cleveland division of the FBI announced Thursday the arrest of a North Carolina man accused of conspiring to provide material support to ISIL.
According to the FBI and the office of the U.S. Attorney of the Northern District of Ohio, Erick Jamal Hendricks, 35, tried to recruit people to train together and conduct terrorist attacks in the United States on behalf of ISIL.
Hendricks was arrested Thursday morning in Charlotte, N.C.
According to the complaint filed in U.S. District Court in the Northern District of Ohio, in June 2015, Amir Said Abdul Rahman Al-Ghazi was arrested in Ohio after attempting to purchase an AK-47 assault rifle and ammunition from an undercover law enforcement officer. Al-Ghazi had openly pledged allegiance to ISIL and had expressed interest on social media in carrying out terror attacks.
Hendricks contacted the individual to recruit him in the spring of 2015 and allegedly told them that he “needed people." He referred to his contacts as “brothers,” and said they were located in Texas and Mexico. He also wanted to “get brothers to meet face to face" and train together, according to the complaint.
Hendricks allegedly told another person that his goal was to create a sleeper cell of ISIL that would conduct terror attacks in the United States.
He mentioned that potential targets for the attacks included military members whose information had been released by ISIL and the woman who organized the “Draw Prophet Mohammad contest."
If convicted, Hendricks faces a statutory maximum sentence of 15 years in prison.
