FBI agents have detained a friend of Dylann Roof, the suspect in June's massacre of nine black churchgoers in South Carolina.
The FBI has been investigating Joseph Meek, who gave Dylann Roof a place to stay at a mobile home weeks ahead of the killings
Joseph Meek, who gave 21-year-old Roof a place to stay at a mobile home in the weeks ahead of the killings, was held by FBI agents on Thursday afternoon.
Meek, 21, was being investigated for allegedly making false statements and concealing knowledge of a crime from authorities, according to a letter he received from the FBI.
He has previously described how Roof, while drunk on vodka, complained that "blacks were taking over the world" and that "someone needed to do something about it for the white race".
Meek told how Roof said he used birthday money from his parents to buy a .45-calibre Glock handgun, which Meek took away from him the night of his rant, but returned to him once Roof had sobered up
His arrest comes a day after Roof's lawyer said his client was willing to plead guilty to state murder charges if that would spare him a death sentence.
Attorney Bill McGuire said a guilty plea by Roof in exchange for a sentence of life in prison without parole also would spare the victims' families and survivors of the shootings the trauma of a trial.
His remarks came during a hearing in Charleston over whether a judge will release 911 emergency telephone calls and police reports about the 17 June shooting.
Prosecutors declined to comment afterwards on whether they would accept a guilty plea from Roof, who is white and has been linked to white supremacist views.
Judge JC Nicholson did not rule on Wednesday, but indicated he would probably release some materials.
In July, he cited concerns about the graphic nature of the evidence from the crime scene at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal church in Charleston.
Assistant US Attorney Nathan Williams, who is prosecuting Roof in federal court, argued on Wednesday for keeping the documents sealed.
He said the families and survivors were "re-traumatised" every time they heard or read about the killings.
In addition to state murder charges, Roof faces 33 federal hate crime and weapons charges that also could result in a death sentence
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