Accused would-be American terrorist to be held till trial’s end

An Israeli court ordered that an Illinois man charged with plotting anti-Muslim violence remain detained until the end of court proceedings against him.

Everett Adam Livix was arrested in November and charged with weapons possession. The indictment accused him of planning to blow up Muslim holy sites in Jerusalem. Israeli police said Livix, posing as a former US Navy SEAL, also turned down an offer from a Palestinian to assassinate US President Barack Obama during his visit to Israel and the West Bank in 2013.

Livix has denied the charges, according to his lawyer, Gal Wolf. In a hearing on Sunday, Wolf said Livix never intended to carry out attacks with the weapons in his possession.

“It bothers me, what the charges say, that he held the weapons in order to carry out the plan, it wasn’t [that way],” he said. “He came here because he said, I’m Christian, I really love the Jews, I think they are being wronged, I think the State of Israel is an important state.”

The prosecutor said Livix had been submitted to a psychological examination and was found to be fit for trial.

The court in the city of Petah Tikva made the decision Sunday.

Livix, 30, went by the name Adam in Israel and back home in Robinson, Illinois, where he had an arrest record for alleged offenses including marijuana possession and theft.

Israel indicted Livix on December 10 on charges of illegal weapon possession and overstaying his visa by more than a year.

His former roommate, a lone soldier in the Givati Brigade, was indicted earlier this month on charges of stealing weapons from the army and selling them to Livvix. The soldier has denied that claim, and said the US suspect had stolen the weapons from him.

According to Israel’s Justice Ministry, an unnamed Palestinian asked Livvix to assassinate Obama with a sniper rifle during the president’s March 2013 visit to the region. Livvix declined, but the FBI ended up involved in the case investigating his actions.

Later that year, Livix entered Israel, the Justice Ministry said, and told Israeli friends he had strong anti-Arab sentiments. The ministry said police discovered the plot in October.