A New York man is being held without bail on terrorism charges after being arraigned Saturday in Brooklyn federal court.
He was arrested February 2 on a minor, unrelated charge in a Long Island suburb, but told police at that time, “I’m going to leave this country, and I’m going to come back with an army; Islam is coming,” according to federal court papers quoted by ABC Eyewitness News.
The suspect, 26-year-old Elvis Redzepagic, is a U.S. citizen and his federal defense attorney, Mildren Whalen, noted in court that he had cooperated with law enforcement officials.
Redzepagic was charged with attempting to provide material support to a foreign terror organization, among other accusations.
He was prepared to strap a bomb on his chest and sacrifice himself for jihad (holy war), according to court papers submitted by New York prosecutors.
Federal authorities said Redzepagic repeatedly traveled to the Middle East, attempting to join the Islamic State (ISIS / Da’esh) or Jabhat al-Nusra — an Al Qaeda affiliate — terrorist organizations in Syria. At one point he actually made it to the border, according to William F. Sweeney, FBI assistance director of the New York field office.
A resident of Commack, Long Island, Redzepagic communicated with a cousin he believed was an extremist fighter in Syria, then traveled to Turkey in July 2015 in an attempt to cross the border into Syria. He flew to Jordan in August 2016 in another try, but was stopped by Jordanian officials.