Magus
October 28th, 2010, 07:29 AM
A Pakistani-born Virginia man was arrested by the FBI on Wednesday on suspicion of taking part in what he thought to be plans for a simultaneous al Qaeda attack next year on multiple Northern Virginia Metrorail stations, the Justice Department said.
Farooque Ahmed, 34, of Ashburn, was taken into custody on charges he attempted to provide material support to a designated terrorist organization, collected information to assist in planning a terrorist attack on a transit facility, and attempted to provide material support to terrorists.
Officials said that at no time was the public in danger during what appears to be a sting operation and that the FBI was aware of Mr. Ahmed's activities and closely monitored them until his arrest.
If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 50 years in prison. Mr. Ahmed was scheduled to make his first court appearance Wednesday afternoon.
"It's chilling that a man from Ashburn is accused of casing rail stations with the goal of killing as many Metro riders as possible through simultaneous bomb attacks," said Neil H. MacBride, U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia.
"Today's arrest highlights the terrorism threat that exists in Northern Virginia and our ability to find those seeking to harm U.S. citizens and neutralize them before they can act," he said.
In a nine-page indictment handed up by a federal grand jury in Alexandria, prosecutors say Mr. Ahmed told someone he thought was an al Qaeda member that he planned to complete the hajj pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia in November and that he "might be ready to travel overseas to conduct jihad in January 2011."
Authorities say that on April 18, Mr. Ahmed drove to a hotel in the Dulles area of Northern Virginia, met with someone he thought was an al Qaeda courier and provided the person with a list of locations for future meetings.
On May 15, at a hotel in Herndon, authorities say, Mr. Ahmed agreed to watch and photograph a Washington, D.C., hotel and the Arlington Cemetery Metrorail station to obtain information about their security and busiest periods.
According to the indictment, Mr. Ahmed participated in surveillance and recorded video images of Metrorail stations in Arlington on four occasions in May and in July.
~Source (http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2010/oct/27/va-man-arrested-plot-attack-metro-stations/)
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Now kids, now you know why the Pakistani(Actually Iranian) Born Baluchi, Faris cannot be well accommodated in U.S.(thanks to these kind of idiots.)
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Farooque Ahmed, 34, of Ashburn, was taken into custody on charges he attempted to provide material support to a designated terrorist organization, collected information to assist in planning a terrorist attack on a transit facility, and attempted to provide material support to terrorists.
Officials said that at no time was the public in danger during what appears to be a sting operation and that the FBI was aware of Mr. Ahmed's activities and closely monitored them until his arrest.
If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 50 years in prison. Mr. Ahmed was scheduled to make his first court appearance Wednesday afternoon.
"It's chilling that a man from Ashburn is accused of casing rail stations with the goal of killing as many Metro riders as possible through simultaneous bomb attacks," said Neil H. MacBride, U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia.
"Today's arrest highlights the terrorism threat that exists in Northern Virginia and our ability to find those seeking to harm U.S. citizens and neutralize them before they can act," he said.
In a nine-page indictment handed up by a federal grand jury in Alexandria, prosecutors say Mr. Ahmed told someone he thought was an al Qaeda member that he planned to complete the hajj pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia in November and that he "might be ready to travel overseas to conduct jihad in January 2011."
Authorities say that on April 18, Mr. Ahmed drove to a hotel in the Dulles area of Northern Virginia, met with someone he thought was an al Qaeda courier and provided the person with a list of locations for future meetings.
On May 15, at a hotel in Herndon, authorities say, Mr. Ahmed agreed to watch and photograph a Washington, D.C., hotel and the Arlington Cemetery Metrorail station to obtain information about their security and busiest periods.
According to the indictment, Mr. Ahmed participated in surveillance and recorded video images of Metrorail stations in Arlington on four occasions in May and in July.
~Source (http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2010/oct/27/va-man-arrested-plot-attack-metro-stations/)
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Now kids, now you know why the Pakistani(Actually Iranian) Born Baluchi, Faris cannot be well accommodated in U.S.(thanks to these kind of idiots.)
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