Kansas man pleads guilty to part in ISIS plot against base
TOPEKA, Kan. - A man accused of aiding a foiled plot to bomb a Kansas military post on behalf of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) pleaded guilty to conspiracy on Monday.
Alexander E. Blair admitted in a Topeka federal court that he loaned $100 to a friend, John T. Booker, to pay for storage of a bomb that Booker planned to detonate last year outside of the Fort Riley military post, which is about 60 miles west of Topeka. Blair could get up to five years in prison when he's sentenced Aug. 22.
Prosecutors say Booker, 21, planned the attack with two contacts who were confidential FBI informants. Agents arrested Booker in April 2015 when he was trying to arm the bomb, which was actually a fake. Booker pleaded guilty in February to one count each of attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction and attempting to destroy government property with an explosive, according to court documents. He hasn't been sentenced yet, but he agreed in his plea deal to serve 30 years in prison.
In a court filing outlining Blair's plea deal, prosecutors say he and Booker met at a Topeka mosque in January 2015 and that they shared similar views about waging jihad against the U.S. military.
After Booker was arrested, FBI agents interviewed Blair and he told them he had refused to participate in the bombing, according to the court documents.
"He wanted me to go with him. I told him no. I didn't want to join the Jihad," he told agents, according to the documents.
Blair said he didn't tell the authorities about the plot because he believed that he was already under law enforcement surveillance, prosecutors contend.
"I thought I was being followed so I figured you guys would know something of it," Blair told agents, according to the documents.