( CNN ) A naturalized U.S. citizen pleaded not guilty in Ohio Friday to federal charges of providing material support to terrorists and lying to the FBI . Abdirahman Sheik Mohamud , 23 , of Columbus , allegedly traveled to Syria for training and wanted to return home to kill Americans -- particularly U.S. soldiers , execution style , the U.S. Department of Justice said Thursday . Mohamud was remanded into custody on Friday . `` I am confident in the system working fairly and ( in ) our client getting a vigorous and aggressive defense , '' said his lawyer , Sam Shamansky . Mohamud told someone that he wanted to target U.S. armed forces , police officers or other people in uniform , the indictment alleges , adding that `` Mohamud 's plan was to attack a military facility , and his backup plan was to attack a prison . '' `` Mohamud talked about doing something big in the United States . He wanted to go to a military base in Texas and kill three or four American soldiers execution style , '' it says . Mohamud allegedly said he was happy that his brother , Aden , died fighting for al-Nusra Front , al Qaeda 's largest affiliate in Syria . Mohamud told someone he planned to join Aden in death soon , the indictment says . He became a U.S. citizen in February 2014 and submitted a U.S. passport application days later , according to the indictment . Mohamud traveled to Syria in April 2014 `` for the purpose of training and fighting with terrorists , '' prosecutors said in a news release . To get there , Mohamud bought a one-way ticket to Greece with a layover in Istanbul , Turkey , the Department of Justice said . He skipped the connecting flight `` and instead completed pre-arranged plans to travel to Syria . '' Once there , he trained in shooting weapons , breaking into homes , using explosives and hand-to-hand combat , prosecutors said . Mohamud `` also stated that , after completing this training , he was instructed by a cleric in the organization to return to the United States and commit an act of terrorism . '' CNN 's John Newsome contributed to this story .
Abdirahman Sheik Mohamud pleads not guilty to charges of providing material support to terrorists and lying to the FBI . The Columbus , Ohio , resident became a U.S. citizen in February 2014 . In April 2014 , he went to Syria for terrorism training , prosecutors say in a news release .