(KRCG) A Columbia man charged in federal court with trying to aid a terrorist operation has pleaded guilty to a single charge in federal court.
Robert Lorenzo Hester, 28, pleaded guilty Monday afternoon to providing material support or resources to terrorists. A sentencing date had not yet been set.
Hester was charged in February 2017, accused of making preparations to launch a terrorist attack and believing he was meeting members of ISIS. Those members were actually undercover law enforcement agents.
The FBI became suspicious of the Columbia man and used an undercover agent to contact Hester on social media, according to a probable cause affidavit. The two then communicated via text and an encrypted messaging app. The agency said Hester presented himself as a security threat, stating that the U.S. government should be “overthrown” and suggested … “hitting” the government “hard.”
