TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A federal judge is giving a man accused of plotting to bomb an Army installation in support of the Islamic State group more time to review the evidence against him.
U.S. District Judge Carlos Murguia on Monday granted a request from John T. Booker Jr.’s public defender for an additional 30 days to review evidence gathered by prosecutors, avoiding a trial in July.
Murguia gave Booker’s attorneys until July 29 to file legal motions and set another hearing for Aug. 19.
According to court documents, the 20-year-old Topeka resident was arrested in April while trying to arm what he thought was a 1,000-pound bomb inside a van near Fort Riley, about an hour west of Topeka. The charges against Booker include attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction.