The U.S. Justice Department says a resident of the U.S. state of Ohio has been indicted on charges of providing material support to Islamic State militants.
Amir Said Rahman Al-Gazhi, 38, was arrested last month after he attempted to buy an AK-47 from an under cover agent, a Justice Department statement said Thursday.
"Al-Ghazi, who changed his name from Robert McCollum earlier this year, is alleged to have pledged his support to ISIL and Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi via social media in 2014. From July 2014 to June 2015, Al-Ghazi made multiple statements trying to persuade others to join ISIL," the statement said. "He also expressed his own desire to perpetrate an attack on the United States and had attempted to purchase an AK-47 assault rifle."
The Justice Department said Al-Ghazi is alleged to have communicated with individuals he believed to be Islamic State members in the Middle East, and he took steps to create propaganda videos for the militant group.
Al-Ghazi also is facing charges related to firearms and narcotics violations.
