( CNN ) -- Authorities have charged a 21-year-old Hawaii man with `` making false statements in a matter involving international terrorism , '' the U.S. Justice Department said . The charge centers around a one-way ticket that authorities allege Abdel Hameed Shehadeh purchased from New York City to Islamabad , Pakistan . Shehadeh originally told investigators that the purpose of his trip was to visit an Islamic university and attend a friend 's engagement party . But he later admitted to FBI agents in Hawaii that he bought the ticket in order to join a fighting group such as the Taliban , according to a criminal complaint unsealed Monday in New York . Pakistani officials denied his entry into the country in June 2008 , the complaint said , and several weeks later Shehadeh attempted to join the U.S. Army at a recruiting station in New York 's Times Square . The complaint alleges that Shehadeh wanted to deploy to Iraq , desert and fight against the U.S. military alongside Iraqi insurgents . Shehadeh -- who was born and raised in New York -- told authorities that he wanted to enlist for career opportunities and benefits , the Justice Department said in a news release . `` The real purpose , it is alleged , was not to join U.S. forces , but to wage war against them . Stopping one prospective terrorist can prevent untold numbers of casualties , '' said Janice Fedarcyk , who heads the FBI 's New York office . The complaint also alleges that Shehadeh `` was the creator and administrator of multiple websites which advocated violent jihad against the west . '' One of the sites contained photos of jihadist fighters , a speech by an al Qaeda leader , an audio recording of Yemeni-American cleric and militant Anwar al-Awlaki reciting a book on jihad , the complaint says . To promote one of the sites , according to the complaint , Shehadeh posted on another site : `` It is time for the Muslims to start practicing our freedom of speech . ... My brothers of revolution Islam , I am with you as long as you keep struggling . Trust me there are many brothers and sisters in America that are ready to speak up . They just need a push . '' The complaint also says Shehadeh purchased an airline ticket to travel to Amman , Jordan , in October 2008 , but was not allowed to enter the country by Jordanian authorities . The complaint does not say why authorities did not allow him to enter Pakistan and Jordan . In 2009 , Shehadeh moved to Hawaii , and later attempted to travel to Somalia . But U.S. authorities informed him he had been placed on the `` no fly '' list and could not travel there , according to the complaint . In an April conversation with the FBI , Shehadeh said that if he had been allowed to enter Pakistan , `` without a doubt , he would have joined the Taliban , '' the complaint said . Shehadeh will be prosecuted in the Eastern District of New York , the Justice Department said . A cousin , Bader Suleiman , called Shehadeh `` a nice kid '' and said he was surprised by news of his arrest . Shehadeh spent almost a year in a hospital recovering from a serious car accident three years ago , Suleiman said . He moved to Hawaii to study after graduating from Tottenville High School on New York City 's Staten Island , Suleiman said .
Authorities allege Abdel Shehadeh lied about a planned trip to Pakistan . He was arrested in August and charged with providing material support for terrorism after he allegedly tried to detonate an explosive device at the U.S. Embassy in Sanaa, Yemen. He is a U.S. citizen who was born and raised in New York .