CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Investigators say a Charlotte man has been arrested for conspiring to provide material support to the terrorist group ISIL.
Erick Hendricks, 35, reportedly tried to recruit people to train together and conduct terrorist attacks in the United States on behalf of ISIL, according to a criminal complaint unsealed Thursday.
According to the complaint, a cooperating witness attempted to purchase an AK-47 assault rifle and ammunition from an undercover law enforcement officer in June 2015. That person allegedly pledged allegiance to ISIL in social media and made statements expressing interest in conducting attacks in the United States.
Hendricks allegedly contacted the cooperating witness over social media to recruit him in the spring of 2015, according to the complaint.
Hendricks is accused of telling the cooperating witness that he ‘needed people’ and wanted to meet with ‘brothers’ located in Texas and Mexico so they could train together.
The cooperating witness told investigators that Hendricks tested his religious knowledge and commitment, inquiring about his willingness to commit ‘jihad’, to die as a ‘martyr’ and his desire to enter ‘jannah’ (paradise).
The cooperating witness told investigators that he believes Hendricks and the other ‘brothers’ in Mexico and Texas may have been responsible for a thwarted terrorist attack in Garland, Texas on May 3, 2015.
Detectives say on April 23, 2015, Hendricks allegedly used social media to contact Elton Simpson, who, along with Nadir Hamid Soofi, was inspired by ISIL and launched the attack on the “First Annual Muhammad Art Exhibit and Contest” in Garland. Simpson and Soofi opened fire, wounding a security guard, before Garland police returned fire and killed both men.
If convicted, Hendricks faces a statutory maximum sentence of 15 years in prison.
