BREAKING: Federal law enforcement officials have busted a man who was planning a lone wolf terrorist attack— Ryan Saavedra (@RealSaavedra) June 7, 2019
The man, whose name has not been released, allegedly planned to throw explosives at people in Times Square https://t.co/V0MN46w6pz
New York Daily News
written by By Rocco Parascandola, Thomas Tracy, and John Annese
Thursday June 6, 2019
Federal authorities busted a man Thursday who was planning to throw explosives at people in Times Square, law enforcement sources tell the Daily News.
The suspect, whose name has not been released, was arrested after the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force — which includes NYPD officers — caught wind of his queries into buying grenades, sources said.
Investigators described the suspect as a lone wolf, and do not believe he was part of a larger plot, sources said.
More information on the suspect and where he was arrested was not immediately available Thursday night.
Times Square has been the target of a number of terror threats in recent years.
A car bombing was thwarted May 1, 2010 when the bomb fizzled on West 45th St. and a nearby handbag vendor alerted cops.
Faisal Shahzad pleaded guilty and just five months after the incident was sentenced to life in federal prison. The one-time suburban Connecticut dad was an admirer of Osama bin Laden, and was unrepentant at sentencing, saying he was part of a group of “proud terrorists.”
The 2008 bombing of the military recruiting station in Times Square remains unsolved.
In that case, a man rode up on a blue bicycle early on the morning of March 6, and left the bomb next to the station. The explosion shattered glass, but didn’t hurt anyone.
The FBI said in 2015 it had identified several persons of interest in the case and in similar bombings at the British Consulate in 2005 and the Mexican Consulate in 2007. But no arrests have been made.
CBS New York published on Jun 7, 2019: Suspect Arrested In Terror Plot Against Times Square. CBS2's Alice Gainer has the latest on the suspect arrested while allegedly trying to buy explosives to attack Times Square.
The Wall Street Journal
written by Ben Chapman and Corinne Ramey
Friday June 7, 2019
A Queens man was charged Friday with buying illegal guns as part of an alleged plot to carry out a terrorist attack in New York City’s Times Square.
Ashiqul Alam, 22 years old, was arrested Thursday afternoon as the result of an elaborate law-enforcement surveillance operation. Mr. Alam, a Bangladeshi citizen who is in the U.S. legally, had a nearly yearlong relationship with an undercover agent with whom he believed he was planning a terrorist attack, according to a criminal complaint unsealed Friday in federal court in Brooklyn.
“As alleged, Ashiqul Alam bought illegal weapons as part of his plan to kill law enforcement officers and civilians in a terrorist attack on Times Square,” said Richard Donoghue, the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of New York. “What he did not know was that he was buying weapons from government agents, who were monitoring his plans and intervening to prevent those plans from escalating into deadly violence.”
Mr. Alam, wearing a purple T-shirt and accompanied by his parents, appeared in federal court in Brooklyn on Friday afternoon. Assistant U.S. Attorney David Kessler asked that Mr. Alam be held in jail. “The defendant has taken specific steps to plan an attack in New York City,” he added.
James Darrow, a lawyer for Mr. Alam, argued for his release. “He’s not charged with terrorism,” said Mr. Darrow, adding that his client has two jobs and attends college.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Cheryl Pollak ordered Mr. Alam held without bail, saying he was a flight risk and danger to the community. Outside the courtroom, Mr. Alam’s parents declined to answer questions about their son.
The suspect’s relationship with the undercover agent began in August, according to the complaint. While meeting with the agent, Mr. Alam claimed to admire terrorist organizations and spoke approvingly of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, the complaint says.
In one conversation with the agent, according to the complaint, Mr. Alam referenced using a suicide vest to either attack Times Square or kill a senior government official in Washington. When the agent asked if Mr. Alam would use a vest, the complaint says, he replied, “Yeah man, that shit is painless…you die right away.”
In December, Mr. Alam met with the agent and discussed an attack in New York City, prosecutors said. He told the agent they needed resources, including bomb-making materials and explosives, the complaint says. The next month, it says, the agent and Mr. Alam conducted a “recon” of Times Square to look for potential targets.
Mr. Alam and the agent continued getting together, both in New York City and on trips to a shooting range in Pennsylvania, according to the complaint. It says they made other trips to Times Square together, focusing in on Father Duffy Square, a busy area near 47th Street and Broadway.
In April, Mr. Alam and the agent met again and discussed the possibility of buying guns from a second undercover agent. Later that day, Mr. Alam met with both agents and said he wanted to buy two Glock semiautomatic pistols and would pay $2,000 for both of them. In further conversations with the agents, Mr. Alam said he was interested in buying an AK-47 rifle and grenades, prosecutors said.
Also that month, Mr. Alam asked the agent to drive him to a LASIK eye-surgery appointment, according to the complaint. When the agent asked why, the complaint says, Mr. Alam replied, “Let’s say we are in an attack, right, say my glasses fall off.” He said the media might call him the “Looney Tunes Terrorist or “Blind Terrorist,” the complaint says.
On Thursday, Mr. Alam and the original agent traveled to another agent’s apartment in Brooklyn, where Mr. Alam bought the guns, prosecutors said. Shortly afterward, Mr. Alam was arrested.
Times Square is one of the city’s busiest attractions and has been the target of terrorist actions in the past. In 2017 a man set off a pipe bomb in the commuter tunnel that connects the bustling Times Square subway station with Manhattan’s Port Authority Bus Terminal.
In 2010 a car bomb was ignited in Times Square but failed to explode.
Six Bangladeshis Apprehended in 12 Hours at Texas Border.https://t.co/9fZ5T5m6HN— Global Awareness 101 (@Mononoke__Hime) November 19, 2018
Breitbart News
written by Bob Price
November 19, 2018
Laredo Sector Border Patrol agents continue to find illegal immigrants from Bangladesh who cross the border from Mexico. During a 12-hour period beginning on Saturday evening, six Bangladeshi nationals were apprehended in two separate incidents.
Agents assigned to the Laredo South Border Patrol Station came upon a group of four suspected illegal immigrants while patrolling near Masterson Road in Laredo, Texas, on Saturday. The agents conducted interviews as part of Laredo Sector line watch operations. The questioning revealed the four young men were Bangladeshi nationals, according to Laredo Sector Border Patrol officials.
The following morning, Laredo South Station agents carrying out line watch operations came upon another group of two suspected illegal immigrants walking near Oleander Street in Laredo. An interview with the subjects revealed the young men to also be Bangladeshi who were smuggled into the U.S., officials reported.
In an incident on October 29, Laredo South Station agents patrolling along the Rio Grande River rescued a group of Bangladeshi nationals as they attempted to cross the river, Breitbart News reported. Two of the migrants nearly drowned before agents were able to pull them into their boat.
During the month of October, the first month of the new fiscal year, Laredo Sector agents apprehended at least 75 Bangladeshi nationals. This represents an increase of more than 10 percent over October 2017.
During FY2018, which ended on September 30, Laredo Sector agents apprehended 668 Bangladeshi migrants — up nearly 270 percent over the previous year’s total. The sector led the nation in the apprehension of these migrants who paid up to $27,000 each to be moved into the U.S. by cartel-connected human smugglers.
“In Fiscal Year 2018, Laredo Sector Border Patrol experienced an unprecedented increase in the apprehension of nationals from the country of Bangladesh,” Laredo Sector Chief Patrol Agent Felix Chavez told Breitbart News earlier this month. “The almost 300% increase in arrests of Bangladeshi nationals over the previous fiscal year highlights the hard work and vigilance of the men and women of the U.S. Border Patrol. We will continue to work with our federal and international partners to share information to stop the flow of those who seek to unlawfully circumvent our nation’s immigration policies.”
Hundreds of miles of open river border in South and Central Texas make the area a prime human smuggling corridor for Mexican cartels.
👇 IN OTHER RELATED NEWS 👇
Guardian News published on December 11, 2017: Suspect arrested after attempted (Islamist) terrorist attack on New York subway. Four people were reported to have been injured in an explosion in the Manhattan area of the city on Monday. The incident happened at around 7.20am local time in a passageway between the 42nd Street Times Square station and the New York Port Authority Subway explosion was attempted terrorist attack, says Mayor.
👇This is the actual footage of what is described by NY Mayor in video above👇
The Sun published on Nov 7, 2018: Footage of failed terror attack in NYC (pipe bomb). The Bangladeshi man accused of detonating a bomb last December in a New York City subway passageway on behalf of Islamic State was found guilty on Tuesday (November 6) of all six criminal counts against him, including use of a weapon of mass destruction and support of a terrorist organization, according to federal prosecutors.
The verdict against Akayed Ullah, 28, came after a week-long jury trial in Manhattan federal court. Ullah's lawyers could not immediately be reached for comment on the verdict. They had not contested the bombing charges, but said his motive was to end his life, not to support Islamic State even though he consumed the militant group's propaganda online.
Ullah was arrested last December after detonating a homemade bomb in a pedestrian tunnel connecting two subway lines and a bus terminal in midtown Manhattan. The explosion did not kill anyone.
Federal prosecutors said Ullah built the bomb out of a pipe taken from a construction site where he worked as an electrician, using match heads and sugar as explosives and screws as shrapnel. They said he was inspired by online Islamic State propaganda urging supporters to carry out "lone wolf" attacks.
Before the attack, prosecutors said, Ullah posted on Facebook: "Trump you failed to protect your nation," followed by an Arabic message expressing support of Islamic State.
Ullah lived with his mother, sister and two brothers in Brooklyn and was a green card holder. At the time of the attack his wife lived in Bangladesh, and the couple had a six-month-old son.
Ullah's wife told Bangladeshi investigators that Ullah had not prayed regularly before moving the United States, and officials said he had no criminal record in his home country.
ABC News published on November 1, 2017: New York City witnesses deadliest terrorist attack since 9/11. Authorities say the suspect, an ISIS supporter, deliberately drove a rented truck onto a bike path, killing 8 people.
This is not the deadliest terrorist attack since 9/11. Has the media really forgotten about the Pulse Nightclub terrorist attack by an Islamist who massacred 50 people in 2016 and the San Bernardino terrorist attack by two Islamist who massacred 14 people in 2015 and the Fort Hood terrorist attack by an Islamist who massacred 13 people in 2009. There are so many more I can mention.
(emphasis mine)
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