Air Force Vet Guilty of Trying to Join Islamic State Group

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Air Force Vet Guilty of Trying to Join Islamic State Group
In this Feb. 24, 2016, courtroom file sketch, Tairod Nathan Webster Pugh (R) sits at the defense table with his attorney Zachary S. Taylor, during jury selection in a federal court in the Brooklyn borough of New York. Pugh, a U.S. Air Force veteran and former airplane mechanic charged with trying to join the Islamic State, was convicted by the jury on March 9, 2016. It was the first verdict to result from more than 70 cases the government has brought against U.S. citizens accused of trying to support the militant group. (AP Photo/Elizabeth Williams)
The Associated Press
3/9/2016
Updated:
3/9/2016

NEW YORK—A U.S. Air Force veteran charged with trying to join the Islamic State group has been convicted in New York City.

A federal jury in Brooklyn returned its verdict Wednesday in the case against Tairod Pugh, of Neptune, New Jersey.

It was the first verdict to result from more than 70 cases the government has brought against U.S. citizens accused of trying to support the militant group. Some defendants across the country have pleaded guilty to charges.

During closing arguments Tuesday, defense lawyer Eric Creizman insisted Pugh had no ill intent when he flew to Turkey in January 2015.

Pugh was in the Air Force from 1986 to 1990, when he was trained to install and maintain aircraft engines and navigation and weapons systems.

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