Mass. man accused of plotting attack on Pentagon, Capitol
Suspect planned violent 'jihad' against US, federal prosecutors say
msnbc.com
updated 2 minutes ago
BOSTON — A Massachusetts man was arrested and charged Wednesday with plotting to attack the Pentagon and U.S. Capitol with a remote-controlled aircraft filled with plastic explosives, federal officials said.
Rezwan Ferdaus, 26, of Ashland, was also charged with attempting to provide material support and resources to al-Qaida in order to carry out attacks on U.S. soldiers stationed overseas.
Ferdaus was arrested Wednesday in Framingham when undercover federal agents delivered materials he had requested for his alleged plan, including grenades, six machine guns and what Ferdaus believed was C-4 explosive.
Ferdaus is a U.S. citizen who graduated from Northeastern University graduate with a degree in physics, according to the U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts
“The conduct alleged today shows that Mr. Ferdaus had long planned to commit violent acts against our country, including attacks on the Pentagon and our nation’s Capitol. Thanks to the diligence of the FBI and our many other law enforcement partners, that plan was thwarted,” U.S. Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz said in a press release.
The public was never in danger from the explosive devices, which were controlled by undercover FBI employees, Ortiz said.
According to court documents:
Ferdaus began planning to commit a violent “jihad” against the U.S. in early 2010. He modified cell phones to act as an electrical switch for explosives and supplied them to undercover FBI agents, whom he believed to be members of, or recruiters for, al-Qaida.
Ferdaus believed that the devices would be used to kill American soldiers overseas. In a meeting with undercover agnets last June, he was told that his first phone detonation device had killed three U.S. soldiers and injured four or five others in Iraq. Ferdaus responded, “That was exactly what I wanted.”
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