Prosecutors to seek detention for Minnesotans in terror case

This photo provided April 21, 2015 by the Sherburne County, Minnesota, Sheriff’s Office shows Zacharia Yusuf Abdurahman, 19. Abdurahman is among six Minnesota men of Somali descent that have been charged in a criminal complaint with traveling or attempting to travel to Syria to join the Islamic State group, which has carried out a host of attacks including beheading Americans. (Sherburne County Sheriff’s Office via AP) This photo provided April 21, 2015 by the Sherburne County, Minnesota, Sheriff’s Office shows Zacharia Yusuf Abdurahman, 19. Abdurahman is among six Minnesota men of Somali descent that have been charged in a criminal complaint with traveling or attempting to travel to Syria to join the Islamic State group, which has carried out a host of attacks including beheading Americans. (Sherburne County Sheriff’s Office via AP)

By Associated Press April 23, 2015 1 min read

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) – A detention hearing is set to be held in federal court in St. Paul for four of the six Minnesotans who are accused of plotting to travel to Syria to join the Islamic State group.

The hearing starts at 9 a.m. Thursday. The remaining two defendants will appear in a San Diego courtroom Friday.

Prosecutors have said they plan to ask a judge to keep the men in custody pending trial, saying they are a flight risk. Defense attorneys disagree.

Since 2007, more than 22 young Somali men have traveled from Minnesota to Somalia to join the militant group al-Shabab. Authorities have said a handful of Minnesota residents have also traveled to Syria to fight with militants in the past year, and at least one has died.