Hawaii soldier thought US government behind Sept. 11 attacks

In this image taken from FBI video and provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Hawaii on Thursday, July 13, 2017, Army Sgt. 1st Class Ikaika Kang holds an Islamic State group flag after allegedly pledging allegiance to the group at a house in Honolulu on July 8. The active duty soldier based in Hawaii helped purchase a drone for the Islamic State group to use against American forces and said he wanted to use his rifle to “kill a bunch of people,” according to an FBI affidavit. A detention hearing is set for Kang on Thursday. (FBI/U.S Attorney’s Office, District of Hawaii via AP)

HONOLULU— A U.S. soldier accused of wanting to commit a mass shooting after pledging loyalty to the Islamic State group believed the moon landing was faked, questioned the assassination of President John F. Kennedy and thought the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks were an inside job coordinated by the U.S. government, according to a former Army bunkmate.

Army Sgt. 1st Class Ikaika Kang is scheduled to appear in federal court in Honolulu Thursday for a detention hearing.

“Kang’s military training, weapons abilities and personal combat skills, coupled with his strong stated desire to kill people in the name of Islamic State, makes him one of the more dangerous criminal defendants to have been charged in this judicial district,” prosecutors wrote in a motion asking that be held without bail.

According to court documents, Kang met with undercover agents he thought were from the Islamic State group at a home in Honolulu, where he pledged allegiance to the group and kissed an Islamic State flag.

Kang was arrested immediately “to remove the possibility that he would act on his impulse to kill people in the name of Islamic State,” prosecutors wrote.

Kang and Dustin Lyles, a medically retired soldier, bunked together for a month in 2013 during military training. The two were friends for several years before Lyle left the Army and the two lost touch.

Lyles told The Associated Press that Kang’s arrest came as a shock and that he never heard Kang express support for the enemy. They shared sleeping quarters, ate together and practiced mixed martial arts.

“If I had known that then … I wouldn’t even have talked to him after that,” Lyles said.

Lyles said he and Kang debated about conspiracies, including that 9/11 was a false flag attack staged by the U.S. to spark wars in the Middle East.

Kang aspired to become a pro MMA fighter, Lyles said. Kang completed a course to become a tactical combat instructor to soldiers, according to an FBI complaint filed in court.

With help from a Veterans Administration loan, Kang purchased a condo in May 2016 in a tidy suburban complex about a 20-minute drive to Schofield Barracks, according to property records.

Dee Asuncion, the real estate agent who helped him with his condo purchase, told The Associated Press that there was one conversation that seemed strange to her. He talked about having respect for the ideology of Islamic terrorist groups.

She also said the two were driving around together looking at properties and began talking about road rage. “(Kang) goes, ‘One time I followed this guy from the east side down to the west side,'” she recalled. “I told him, ‘Don’t do stuff like that. Just let it go.'”

Kang’s court-appointed lawyer, Birney Bervar, said Monday his client may suffer from service-related mental health issues of which the government was aware but neglected to treat. Bervar did not elaborate.

Kang’s father, Clifford Kang, told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser his son’s promotion to sergeant first class came in the last six months, and told the newspaper he was proud of his son for serving and his position as an air traffic controller.

But the father was worried about the stress of the job.

“I kept on telling him, ‘Being an air traffic controller (is) too stressful. You can always change … and they will understand.’ And he said, ‘I can handle.'”