Ikaika Erik Kang is an active duty U.S. Soldier who was taken into custody at his apartment in Waipahu, Hawaii on Saturday. The 34-year-old soldier’s arrest came after he admitted to pledging allegiance to the Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and told an undercover FBI agent of his wish to kill “a bunch of people.” Kang was allegedly attempting to provide training and material support to ISIS. Kang was assigned to the 25th Infantry Division at Schofield Barracks in Hawaii.

FBI believes U.S. soldier was a ‘lone actor’

As reported by the Army Times, the pledge of allegiance to ISIS came on Saturday, when Kang believed he was meeting an Islamic State member, but instead met with an undercover FBI agent.

Kang told the agent he had been involved in the purchase of a drone that would assist ISIS terrorists to evade U.S. tanks during conflict, explaining to the agent that tank crews had been highly trained and were difficult to defeat. Kang went on to say the drone would allow "soldiers" of the Islamic State to establish tank positions and possible avenues for escape.

Paul D. Delacourt, FBI Special Agent in Charge, said in a statement following Kang’s appearance in federal court that the soldier had been arrested on probable cause and in the interest of public safety.

Delacourt went on to say officials believe Kang is a "lone actor" in presenting a threat to Hawaii and that he wasn’t associated with any other person.

Army became concerned over Kang's radicalization in 2016

According to Delacourt, the FBI had been investigating Kang for more than a year after the Army became concerned that the soldier may have been radicalized.

There were reportedly multiple agencies involved in the investigation.

According to the criminal complaint, Kang was attempting to provide both classified and unclassified sensitive military documents to ISIS. However while Kang copied the sensitive documents in 2015, FBI officials say none of the classified information ever did end up in the hands of Islamic State.

The complaint did state, however, that Kang told the undercover FBI agent that he was interested in fighting overseas for the terror group and was planning to offer training and other support to ISIS.

Soldier’s lawyer believes his client is suffering from PTSD

Hawaii News Now quotes Birney Bervar, Kang’s defense attorney, as saying he only had limited contact with his client prior to the hearing but that the soldier was cooperative. According to Bervar, Kang may be suffering from “service-related mental health issues,” adding that the government was aware of this, but gave him no treatment.

Reportedly Kang was a sergeant and decorated veteran who had served in two deployments in the Middle East.

Kang’s father, Clifford Kang, told Hawaii News Now that he also believes his son was suffering PTSD from his tours in the Middle East. He told the news service that he was “in shock,” and that his son is a great kid. He added that Kang is not an outgoing person and never has been, but was otherwise a normal child who grew up in Waimanalo. In the video below, the father said he understands about PTSD, as he was active during the Vietnam War.

According to Kang’s military record, the soldier enlisted in the army back in December 2001 and served in Iraq in 2010, followed by a deployment to Afghanistan in 2014. Kang worked as an air traffic control operator and he also received the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal.
© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED