A man accused of killing a soldier outside an Arkansas military recruiting center last year claims he has terror ties to Al Qaeda in Yemen, and asked a judge to change his plea to guilty, the New York Times reported.
Abdulhakim Muhammad says the Little Rock shooting was "a Jihadi Attack" in response to American troops killing Muslims, the Tennessee man says in a letter to the judge.
"I wasn’t insane or post traumatic nor was I forced to do this Act,” Muhammad said in a two-page, hand-printed note in pencil, according to the Times. "The attack, which he said did not go as planned, was “justified according to Islamic Laws and the Islamic Religion. Jihad — to fight those who wage war on Islam and Muslims.”
Authorities have not been able to confirm Muhammad's claims.
Starting in 2007, the 24-year-old Muslim concert spent about 16 months in Yemen teaching English and learning Arabic, the Times reported.
His father told the Times, "I think a lot of this is make-believe."
Click here to read more on this story from the New York Times.
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