A 23-year-old resident of Columbus, Ohio, who trained with a group affiliated with al Qaeda has been arrested and charged with plotting an attack on American soil, the Justice Department revealed today. Abdirahman Sheik Mohamud, a naturalized American citizen of Somali descent, had been instructed by a cleric to return to the United States and carry out an act of terrorism, the indictment said. The Justice Department stated that Mohamud was also an Islamic State sympathizer, and that his brother, Abdifatah Aden, was killed fighting with the group in Syria in 2013. Terror suspect: Abdirahman Sheik Mohamud, 23, from Columbus, Ohio, has been arrested and charged with supporting terrorism after getting training in Syria . According to court documents, Mohamud left the US a year ago with the intent to go to Syria and train with a terrorist group linked to al Qaeda in Iraq. In April 2014, he purchased a one-way ticket to Greece, but during a layover in Istanbul he failed to board a connecting flight to Athens and instead made his way to Syria. Once he reached his destination, Mohamud stated that he received training in shooting weapons, breaking into houses, explosives and hand-to-hand combat. The 23-year-old Columbus man aloes said that after completing his training, a cleric with the group Jabhat al-Nusrah instructed him to return to the US and commit an act of terror. The 23-year-old returned to the US in June 2014 with a plot to attack a military base or a correctional facility, targeting people in uniform, according to court documents. 'Mohamud talked about doing something big in the United States,' the papers cited by ABC News indicate. 'He wanted to go to a military base in Texas and kill three or four American soldiers execution style.' On Thursday, Mohamud was indicted on one count of attempting to provide and providing material support to terrorists, one count of attempting to provide and providing material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization, and one count of making false statements to the FBI. The first two counts, providing material support to terrorists and providing material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization are each crimes punishable by up to 15 years in prison. Abdirahman Sheik Mohamud, left, speaks with his defense attorney, Sam Shamansky, during a hearing to set bond on state charges of money laundering and providing support for terrorism in February . Making false statements involving international terrorism carries a maximum sentence of eight years in prison. Mohamud was arrested on state charges February 21, 2015, and is expected to be transferred into federal custody based on today’s indictment. Before Mohamud's brother was killed in battle on or around June 3, 2014, the two had exchanged emails discussing the 23-year-old's plans to travel to Syria and fight with Islamic State. In February, Mohamud asked Abdifatah Aden how he could send him money. Later that month, Mohamud was arrested at his Columbus home for allegedly providing a computer tablet an other material support to terroist organizations aborad. Prosecutor Ron O'Brien at the time asked a judge to set Mohamud's bond at $1million saying he was a flight risk and posed a threat to public safety. Mohamud's attorney, Sam Shamansky, insisted that his client was not a terrorist and would not flee because he was taking care of his ailing mother in Ohio.
Abdirahman Sheik Mohamud, 23, from Columbus, said he got training from terror group linked to al Qaeda in Syria .
Was instructed by cleric to return to US and carry out terror attack .
His suspected plan was to go to a military base and kill three-four soldiers 'execution-style'
Mohamud was arrested in February on state charges of money laundering and providing support for terrorism .
If convicted in federal case, the 3-year-old could face up to 40 years in prison .