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CHICAGO (AP) — An Illinois Army National Guard soldier and his cousin are expected to plead guilty to charges they conspired to provide material support to the Islamic State group, according to federal authorities.
The guardsman, Hasan Edmonds, 22, and Jonas Edmonds, 29, are accused of plotting to attack the Joliet Armory with assault rifles and grenades. Prosecutors have alleged that Jonas Edmonds planned to wear his cousin's military uniform in the attack at the facility where Hasan Edmonds trained, and that they hoped to kill as many as 150 people.
During a brief hearing in Chicago on Wednesday, prosecutors told U.S. District Judge John Lee that the cousins likely will change their not guilty pleas. Attorneys representing the men said details are still being worked out in negotiations with the government, but that they're working to resolve the case with guilty pleas.
Lee told both sides that he would set a date for change-of-plea hearing after the lawyers return to court in mid-October.
Federal agents had been tracking the cousins since late last year when Hasan Edmonds expressed his desire to join in Islamic State in Facebook messages he exchanged with an agent posing as a militant, according to the criminal complaint.
Hasan Edmonds was arrested March 25 as he tried to board a flight from Chicago's Midway Airport to Egypt. Jonas Edmonds was arrested the same day at his home.
Hasan and Jonas Edmonds are being held without bond and face up to 15 years in prison if convicted.
Both men are from Aurora, about 40 miles outside of Chicago.
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