Prosecutors: Man who wanted jihad tried to join US military

NORFOLK, Va. – A Virginia man who prosecutors say told an undercover agent that he wanted to commit jihad and tried to join the U.S. military has been arrested.

Federal authorities said Thursday that they arrested Shivam Patel on charges that he hid information from military recruiters.

The U.S. attorney’s office said in a press release that the 27-year-old told an undercover agent and a confidential source that he wanted to join a “Muslim army” and commit jihad.

Prosecutors say the man from Williamsburg, Virginia, had also visited China and Jordan. Authorities said Patel was deported from Jordan to the United States but didn’t say why.

When Patel tried to join the U.S. Army and Air Force, prosecutors said, he failed to disclose his foreign travel.

Court records don’t list a lawyer for Patel.