Man Charged With Lying In Minnesota al-Shabab Case

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- A man who allegedly contacted a terror suspect who's wanted in Minnesota for his ties to al-Shabab has been charged with lying to the FBI.

Mahdi Hussein Furreh is indicted in federal court in Minnesota on one count of making a false statement.

According to the indictment, Furreh lied to the FBI in January when he denied knowing anyone by the name of "Adaway."

Authorities say that in fact, Furreh knew Adaway was a nickname for Cabdulaahi Ahmed Faarax, a Minnesota man who is at large and accused of encouraging local Somalis to return to their homeland and join al-Shabab.

The indictment says Furreh went to Kenya in March 2013 and repeatedly contacted Faarax by telephone both before and during his trip.

Furreh is expected to plead guilty Friday.