Authorities believe that officer Nicholas Young, while working for the Metro Transit Police Department in Washington, D.C. – a community he swore to protect – was trying to assist ISIS operatives find more ways to communicate in secret. Young allegedly bought $245 in gift cards that could in turn be used for mobile messaging accounts ISIS uses in recruiting, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
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After his arrest, Young’s employment with DC Metro was terminated, Metro General Manager Paul Wiedefeld said, according to NBC News.
A Washington transit police officer was arrested on Wednesday (July 3) on charges he attempted to help the Islamic State, the US Justice Department said, the first member of law enforcement facing such charges involving a government-designated terrorist group.
However, Young never posed a credible threat to the Washington Metro, the country’s second most heavily travelled subway system after the one in NY, according to what Joshua Stueve, a spokesman for the USA attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, told NBC News.
Documents show Young has been under surveillance since 2010, and that he traveled to Libya twice in 2011, where he said he joined rebel forces seeking to oust dictator Muammar Gaddafi.
Young is the first US police officer to face a terror-related charge, according to the Associated Press.
Senator Ben Sasse, a Republican on the Homeland Security Committee, hailed the work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation in apprehending Young.
Metro fired Young as soon as he was arrested.
The FBI redeemed the codes for $245.
It appears that Young first drew the suspicion of coworkers in the transit police department. According to ABC News, Young was arrested while he was at the transit police headquarters in Washington.
Throughout the investigation, law enforcement agents apparently never saw fit to stop Young from carrying weapons or continuing his work, even noting that he had undertaken off-site weapons training for his job in March. The DOJ also reported that baggage searches revealed Young traveled with several military-style items, including body armor and a kevlar helmet.
Young faces 20 years in prison if convicted.
“Obviously, the allegations in this case are profoundly disturbing”.
Young’s own trouble with law enforcement started back in September of 2010 when he was interviewed regarding his connection with Zachary Chesser, who pleaded guilty for attempting to provide material support to a terrorist organization. He would keep mum on his plans so that “people would find out what he was going to do after it happened”, Young told the undercover, according to the affidavit. When trying to move money out of the country a year ago, Young allegedly said, “Unfortunately I have enough flags on my name that I can’t even buy a plane ticket without little alerts ending up in someone’s hands”.
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Charging documents reveal Young despised the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
