U.S. soldier charged with attempting to aid ISIS

WASHINGTON — An Army sergeant stationed in Hawaii was charged with trying to provide equipment, training and classified military information to the Islamic State, after undercover FBI agents documented his offers of support to the militant group in a series of meetings in June and July, according to an indictment.

Sgt. 1st Class Ikaika Erik Kang, 34, was arrested July 8 and charged in an indictment filed in U.S. District Court of Hawaii on Friday. If convicted, he faces a maximum of 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000 for each of four counts against him.

According to the indictment, which was announced Saturday by the Justice Department and the FBI, Kang tried to offer “material support or resources” in meetings with the agents, whom he believed were associates of the Islamic State.

In one encounter on June 23, Kang offered classified military documents.

According to an FBI affidavit filed in federal court July 10 and obtained by The Associated Press, the sergeant, an air traffic controller at Wheeler Army Airfield in Hawaii, described fantasies about killing fellow military members and pledging loyalty to the Islamic State.

His commanding officers called in the FBI when they feared he had become radicalized.

Birney Bervar, Kang’s lawyer, said by telephone Sunday that he wished the Army had offered psychiatric resources to the sergeant. “The Army probably should have done some type of medical or mental evaluation before launching an undercover criminal evaluation,” he said.

In an interview with a Hawaiian television station, Kang’s father, Clifford Kang, said his son’s behavior could be traced to post-traumatic stress disorder.