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CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — A federal indictment alleges that a North Carolina man accused of plotting a terror attack in the U.S. communicated with a member of the Islamic State as he developed his plans.
The indictment filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Charlotte said Justin Nojan Sullivan spoke with Junaid Hussain in June 2015 via social media about making a video of a terrorist attack in the U.S. to be used by IS.
The original indictment unsealed in February accused Sullivan of killing his neighbor and stealing his money so he could buy an assault rifle to carry out an IS-inspired shooting at a concert or club. The indictment said Sullivan offered an undercover FBI employee money to kill his parents, who he believed would interfere with his plans.
In the initial indictment, Sullivan was accused of planning to use an assault rifle and silencer to carry out an attack at a concert, bar or club, which he believed would kill as many as 1,000 people.
A grand jury in Burke County also indicted Sullivan in February on a murder charge in the death of 74-year-old John Bailey Clark, who lived a few doors down from him, said District Attorney David Learner.
In December 2014, he used a .22-caliber rifle stolen from his father's gun cabinet to shoot Clark in the head, the federal indictment said. A news release said forensic testing shows the rifle was used to kill Clark.
Federal authorities said they began investigating Sullivan after his father called 911 in April 2015 saying his son was destroying religious items in their home in Morganton. He was arrested at the family's home without incident on June 19, and later told investigators that he planned to carry out an attack in the coming days when his parents were expected to be out of town, investigators have said.
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