New Mexico man accused of supporting Islamic State group

ALBUQUERQUE, NM (AP) — A New Mexico man has been arrested and charged with attempting to provide material support to the Islamic State group and shutting down an online platform that may have linked two other men to similar charges.

Herman Leyvoune Wilson, 45, of Albuquerque, was arrested on Friday and will remain in custody pending arraignment in federal court on Tuesday, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in New Mexico said. Wilson’s newly appointed federal public defender did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment on the charges.

The statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office says Wilson, also known as Bilal Mu’Min Abdullah, was indicted earlier in the week by a federal grand jury on charges related to the Islamic State group, a designated foreign terrorist organization. by the United States.

Federal prosecutors believe Wilson was trying to establish an ‘Islamic State center’ in New Mexico that would teach Islamic State group ideology, provide martial arts training and serve as a safe haven for people preparing to fight for the group in the United States and abroad.

Two men arrested in September 2020 for providing material support to the Islamic State group testified that Wilson radicalized them to the group’s ideology. Prosecutors say Wilson then allegedly shut down an online platform that may have linked the men to his group.

Kristopher Matthews and Jaylin Molina were arrested for providing material support to the Islamic State group and later pleaded guilty to that charge in the Western District of Texas. Prosecutors charged them with conspiring to bomb or fire at sites including the White House and Trump Tower in New York.

The men were later convicted in a US court in Texas. Matthews, 36, of South Carolina, was recently sentenced to 20 years in prison, and Molina, 24, of Cost, Texas, was sentenced to 18.

The Associated Press

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