GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — Attorneys for the three men arrested in Kent County and accused of trying to join the Islamic State militant group claim the FBI was "paving the way" for their clients get more involved in the terrorist organization.
Muse Muse, 20; his brother 23-year-old Mohamud Muse; and cousin 26-year-old Mohamed Haji were all in federal court in Grand Rapids for a detention hearing Friday.
A federal agent testified as the U.S. Attorney's Office laid out the evidence against the trio. Federal investigators arrested them at the Gerald R. Ford International Airport on Monday, when authorities say Muse Muse was boarding a plane to fly to Somalia to join and fight for the Islamic State.
The agent testified that the men thought they had been talking to people associated with ISIS on Facebook Messenger for months, but they were actually in contact with undercover FBI employees.