Zolnierek/iStock(NEW YORK) — An American citizen who allegedly became an ISIS sniper and weapons instructor has been charged by federal authorities with helping the terrorist organization, prosecutors said Friday.

Ruslan Maratovich Asainov, a naturalized U.S. citizen born in Kazakhstan, was charged with providing and attempting to provide material support to ISIS, according to criminal complaint unsealed in Brooklyn federal court.

“The defendant, a naturalized U.S. citizen residing in Brooklyn, turned his back on the country that took him in and joined ISIS, serving its violent ends in Syria and attempting to recruit others to its cause,” stated United States Attorney Donoghue. “Our counterterrorism prosecutors and law enforcement partners will continue working relentlessly to hold accountable those like the defendant who have supported ISIS’s violent agenda.”

Copyright © 2019, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.