EL PASO, Texas, Nov. 10 (UPI) -- A 19-year-old Wyoming college student was in federal custody Wednesday at El Paso, Texas, on charges of allegedly supporting a terrorist group in Somalia.
Mark Robert Walker of Rochester, N.Y., was arrested Saturday at the border by agents of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the El Paso Times reported.
Walker allegedly intended to provide support to a designated foreign terrorist organization, Ittihad Al Islamiya, a Somali group. If convicted, he could face 15 years in prison and up to $250,000 in fines.
According to a court statement, Walker said online: "I hate the U.S. government. I wish I could have been flying one of the planes on Sept. 11," and "We have to act quickly to stop the non-Islamic Somali provisional government."
Walker also said he wanted to buy bulletproof vests to send to Somalia, U.S. officials said.
Walker attended Wyoming Technical College in Laramie and he apparently fled to the border after his roommate reported him to police. The FBI said he may have planned to fly to Somalia from Mexico City.
