Prosecutors: Terror suspect wanted to blow up Washington subway stations

29 October 2010

A Pakistani-American national has been arrested by US federal authorities in connection with an alleged plot to bomb several subway stations in the Greater Washington area. Farooque Ahmed, of Ashburn, a Greater Washington suburb, had conspired with people he thought to be al-Qaeda operatives to bomb the Arlington Cemetery, Pentagon City, Crystal City and Court House Metrorail stations during rush hour, the indictment states. Ahmed, a naturalized US citizen born in Pakistan, first drew the attention of law enforcement officials by seeking to obtain unspecified materials, officials revealed.

Ahmed allegedly told undercover FBI operatives who he thought were al-Qaeda terrorists that he was ready to martyr himself in battle. He had trained himself in martial arts, use of firearms, and knife and gun tactics, and he offered to teach those skills. A federal grand jury returned a three-count indictment against Ahmed on Tuesday, the US Justice Department said in a statement, and he is to appear in court on Friday who will decide on his detention. The arrest warrant included a sworn statement by an FBI agent who said Ahmed and "an associate" had visited several Metrorail stations to record video he later handed over to the undercover agents.

The 34-year-old is charged with attempting to provide material support to a designated terrorist organization, collecting information to assist in planning a terrorist attack on a transit facility and attempting to provide material support "to help carry out multiple bombings to cause mass casualties" at the Washington-area stations, authorities said.

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