US soldier pleads guilty to trying to help IS

HONOLULU: A soldier based in Hawaii pleaded guilty to trying to help the Islamic State group – admitting he provided secret military information, a drone meant to track US troops and other support to undercover agents he believed were members of the terrorist organisation.

Sgt 1st Class Ikaika Kang, 35, handcuffed and wearing a beige prison jumpsuit, spoke in a clear voice when he told a US magistrate judge he’s guilty of all four counts against him.

“Your honour, I provided unclassified, classified documents to the Islamic State,” Kang said.

He agreed when Assistant US Attorney Ken Sorenson described other support he provided to undercover agents Kang believed were part of the Islamic State group, also known as ISIS.

By at least early 2016, Kang became sympathetic to the group, Sorenson said.

The FBI gathered information from sources he knew, worked with or lived with when it began an investigation in August 2016, Sorenson said.

Kang provided voluminous, digital documents that included sensitive information including the US military’s weapons file, details about a sensitive mobile airspace management system, various military manuals and documents containing personal information about US service members, Sorenson said.

Trained as an air traffic controller with a secret security clearance, Kang also provided documents including call signs, mission procedures and radio frequencies, “all of which would have been helpful to ISIS”, Sorenson said. — AP