A former U.S. Air Force veteran attempted to cross the Syrian border to join the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria.
Tairod Nathan Webster Pugh, a former avionics specialist with the Air Force, was indicted Monday by a grand jury in Brooklyn, N.Y., after being arrested for trying to join the terrorist organization.
“Pugh, an American citizen and former member of our military, allegedly abandoned his allegiance to the United States and sought to provide material support to [the Islamic State],” Assistant Attorney General John Carlin said. “Identifying and bringing to justice individuals who provide or attempt to provide material support to terrorists is a key priority of the National Security Division.”
Pugh will be arraigned Wednesday on a two-counts charge that includes attempting to provide material support to terror organization and obstruction and attempted obstruction of justice.
After leaving the Air Force, Pugh worked for a number of companies in both the U.S. and Middle East in the avionics and airplane industry. After being fired from his job as an airplane mechanic based in the Middle East, officials say he attempted to join the Islamic State soon after.
In January, Pugh traveled from Egypt to Turkey in an effort to cross the Syrian border. When denied by Turkish authorities, he was sent back to Egypt whereafter he was soon deported back to the U.S.
Days before his arrest, he tried to damage or destroy multiple electronic devises he was carrying. In one, he had downloaded a “chart of crossing points between Turkey and Syria,” as well as a 55-minute long Islamic State propaganda video showing executions.
If convicted, Pugh faces a maximum sentence of 35 years in prison.
