Court orders D.C. cop held before going on trial for helping Islamic State

A Washington transit police officer charged with attempting to help the Islamic State militant group was ordered held pending trial, U.S. court documents showed on Thursday.

The suspect, Nicholas Young, 36, of Fairfax, Virginia, was arrested this month in an FBI sting operation. He is the first U.S. police officer to face such charges involving a group on the government's terrorism list.

U.S. Magistrate Judge John Anderson in Alexandria, Virginia, ordered Young to remain held pending trial, according to court filings. He cited risks that Young may not show up for a court appearance and that he could endanger public safety.

Young is alleged to have sent codes for gift cards worth $245 to an FBI informant posing as someone who was working with Islamic State in July. The cards were intended for mobile-messaging accounts that the militant group uses to recruit its followers.

Young had been an officer with the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority since 2003. He was fired after his arrest on Aug. 3.

(Reporting by Ian Simpson in Washington; Editing by Sandra Maler)