A federal grand in Hawaii indicted a U.S. soldier on Friday for allegedly attempting to provide material support to the Islamic State group.
Army Sgt. 1st Class Ikaika Erik Kang, 34, was arrested by an FBI SWAT team on July 8. Kang was ordered held without bail. Kang was employed at Schofield Barracks in Hawaii.
Kang will be arraigned in federal court on Monday, which is when he had previously been scheduled for a preliminary hearing. Kang’s court-appointed attorney, Birney Bervar, told The Associated Press Friday that the indictment was expected.
“We haven’t had a preliminary in federal court here in probably 25 years,” Bervar told The Associated Press. “They don’t like to let us question their witnesses.”
Bervar said the soldier would plead not guilty on Monday when a federal judge will set a trial date.
The soldier faces “a maximum of 20 years in prison and up to a $250,000 fine for each count,” according to a press release from the United States Department of Justice National Security Division.
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