From the Army Times:
High school yearbook photo of Baxam
Federal prosecutors have charged a former Army trooper with trying to provide support to terrorists after he allegedly traveled to Africa to link up with the violent militant group al-Shabaab.
Craig Benedict Baxam, 24, of Laurel, Md., was arrested Jan. 6 after returning to the United States from Africa. He allegedly wanted to give money to al-Shabaab, a militia group trying to destabilize Somalia’s transitional government.
Baxam, an Iraq War veteran, tried to reach Somalia but was caught in Kenya by local anti-terrorism authorities, U.S. Attorney Rod Rosenstein in a release.
He allegedly converted to Islam just days before he left the Army.
Baxam joined the Army in 2007 and completed eight months of advanced training for cryptology and intelligence at Goodfellow Air Force Base in San Angelo, Texas, according to the affidavit supporting the criminal complaint.
He was deployed to Baghdad with the 18th Airborne Corps at Fort Bragg, N.C., and he re-enlisted when his deployment completed. In August 2010, he deployed for a one year assignment at Camp Red Cloud, Korea, with the 2nd Infantry Division.
The full story is here.
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.