ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – A New Mexico man has been arrested and charged with attempting to provide material support to the Daesh group and shutting down an online platform that could have implicated two other men.
Herman Leyvoune Wilson, 45, of Albuquerque, was arrested Friday and will remain in custody until his arraignment in federal court on Tuesday, according to the US Attorney’s Office in New Mexico. Wilson’s newly appointed federal public defender did not respond to an email requesting comment on the charges right away.
Wilson, also known as Bilal Mu’Min Abdullah, was indicted earlier this week by a federal grand jury on charges related to the Daesh group, a US designated foreign terrorist organization, according to a statement from the US Attorney’s Office.
According to federal prosecutors, Wilson was attempting to establish a “Islamic State Center” in New Mexico that would teach Daesh 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.
Wilson radicalized two men arrested in September 2020 for providing material support to the Daesh group, according to their testimony. Prosecutors claim that Wilson then shut down an online platform that could have linked the men to his group.
Kristopher Matthews and Jaylin Molina were arrested and later pleaded guilty to providing material support to the Daesh group in the Western District of Texas. Prosecutors accused them of plotting to bomb or shoot up sites in New York City, including the White House and Trump Tower.
A US court in Texas later convicted the men. Matthews, 36, of South Carolina, was sentenced to 20 years in prison, while Molina, 24, of Cost, Texas, was sentenced to 18 years.
Source: AFP
