A naturalized United States citizen from Pakistan has been placed under arrest for the unsuccessful car bomb attack in Times Square Saturday evening.
30-year-old Faisal Shahzad of Connecticut was tracked down by police as the person who recently bought the 1993 Nissan Pathfinder that was found loaded with gasoline, propane, fireworks and fertilizer in the heart of Times Square. The vehicle identification number had been removed from the Pathfinder’s dashboard, but it was stamped on the engine. Investigators used it to find the owner of record, who told them he had sold the vehicle to a stranger.
Mr. Shahzad was taken into custody at Kennedy Airport late last night as he attempted to escape the U.S. aboard a flight to Dubai, Attorney General Eric Holder said early this morning in a statement delivered at the Justice Department in Washington. “Over the course of the day today, we have gathered significant additional evidence that led to tonight’s arrest,” Mr. Holder said. “The investigation is ongoing, as are our attempts to gather useful intelligence, and we continue to pursue a number of leads. But it’s clear that the intent behind this terrorist act was to kill Americans.”
Mr. Shahzad had spent the last several months in Pakistan and recently returned to the U.S. just before attempting to detonate the car bomb in midtown Manhattan. Police discovered his identity and whereabouts at the 11th hour and raced to Kennedy Airport, where Shahzad had boarded the flight to Dubai, which had already pulled away from the jet-way and was preparing for take-off. The plane was summoned back to the gate and Shahzad was arrested on the spot. He has since admitted his involvement and claimed he acted alone in his failed attempt. But authorities are not ruling out the possibility of other suspects involved.
The SUV was parked near offices of Viacom Inc., which owns Comedy Central. The network recently aired an episode of the animated show “South Park” that the group Revolution Muslim complained insulted the Prophet Muhammad by depicting him in a bear costume. The date of the botched bombing, May 1, was International Workers Day, a traditional date for political demonstrations, and thousands of people had rallied for immigration reform that day in New York.
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I saw this breaking news early this morning and wasn't at all suprised that they were able to identify the guy_and arrest him so quickly. No doubt, they were able to collect a lot of evidence just from the car.It appears we have a domestic terrorist of foreign heritage. Time (via the investigation) will tell whether there's a foreign “connection” to the actual plot(?)..but Thankfully, in this case (as with the “underwear bomber”) the guy was unskilled and We were spared a lot of death, destruction and mayhem. Kudos to the Obama administration in their approach to handling this entire "threat" and to Us (most of the American people)_New Yorkers in particular_for NOT falling all to pieces and over-reacting in a detrimental panic!