A 34-year-old man from Ashburn, Va., has been arrested for attempting to assist others he believed to be members of al-Qaeda in planning multiple bombings at Metrorail stations in the Washington, D.C., area.
Farooque Ahmed, a naturalized U.S. citizen born in Pakistan, was taken into custody earlier this morning by the FBI. According to officials, Ahmed allegedly plotted with individuals he believed were terrorists to bomb the transit system, but a coordinated law enforcement and intelligence effort was able to thwart his plans.
‘Today’s case underscores the need for continued vigilance against terrorist threats and demonstrates how the government can neutralize such threats before they come to fruition,’ said David Kris, Assistant Attorney General for National Security.
‘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 U.S. Attorney Neil H. MacBride.
According to the indictment, from April 2010 through Oct. 25, 2010, Ahmed attempted to assist others whom he believed to be members of al-Qaeda in planning multiple bombings to cause mass casualties at Metrorail stations.
Ahmed was arrested by the FBI early this morning and is scheduled to make his first appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge John F. Anderson at 2:00 P.M. EDT at the federal courthouse in Alexandria.
If convicted, Ahmed faces a maximum penalty of 50 years in prison for 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 D.C.-area Metrorail stations.
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