New York Federal Reserve bomb plot foiled

• Yoorah wrote on 2012-10-17 22:03

  Quazi Mohammad Rezwanul Ahsan Nafis, 21, was arrested in a sting operation
  The Associated Press
  Posted: Oct 17, 2012 5:12 PM ET
  Last Updated: Oct 17, 2012 5:08 PM ET
  
  Federal authorities have arrested a man they said was plotting to blow up the Federal Reserve building in Manhattan, just blocks from the World Trade Center site.
  
  Quazi Mohammad Rezwanul Ahsan Nafis, 21, was arrested in a sting operation Wednesday morning after he parked a van filled with what he believed were explosives outside the building and tried to detonate it in a suicide mission, authorities said.
  
  Earlier in the day, he went to a warehouse and assembled what he believed to be a 450-kilogram bomb using inert explosives provided by federal agents. He also recorded a videotaped statement in which he said, "We will not stop until we attain victory or martyrdom," federal prosecutors said.
  
  Agents said Nafis proposed several spots
  
  Authorities said Nafis proposed several spots for his attack, including the New York Stock Exchange — and that in a written letter taking responsibility for the Federal Reserve job he was about to carry out, he said he wanted to "destroy America."
  
  The bank in New York, located at 33 Liberty St., is one of 12 branches around the country that, along with the Board of Governors in Washington, make up the Federal Reserve System that serves as the central bank of the United States. It sets interest rates.
  
  The Bangladeshi native reported having overseas connections to al-Qaeda, and travelled to the U.S. in January to carry out an attack, according to a complaint filed in federal court in Brooklyn. He was trying to recruit people, but one was a secret FBI source, and Nafis was closely monitored as he tried to act out his plot.
  
  Federal authorities said the public was not in danger during any point in the investigation.
  
  Nafis was awaiting a federal court hearing later Wednesday where he is facing a charge of attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction and attempting to provide material support for al-Qaeda.
  
  Nafis was living in the New York borough of Queens. It's not clear if he has a lawyer yet.

  
  Source: http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/story/2012/10/17/new-york-bomb-plot-federal-reserve.html
  
  Looks like someone got trolled by the FBI again. But it makes me wonder how far he could have gotten without the FBI's fake assistance, in the first place. There was a stupid case of a "foiled bomb plot" in Chicago where the FBI found some crazy dude and basically gave him a fake bomb. Then they arrested him when he tried to use it, or something stupid along those lines.
  
  Seeing as this guy came over and tried to recruit people for his project, and actually proposed targets himself... it makes me think that the work by federal agents in this case is more legitimate, however.
  
  Yay for sophisticated intelligence gathering that most people assume is illegal and/or doesn't happen!
• Osayidan wrote on 2012-10-18 01:02
  I'm glad it all worked out but one day sting operations like this will get out of control. For example what if the bad guy finds out, keeps quiet about it and arranges for a real bomb via other sources. It won't be pretty.
• RealityBreak wrote on 2012-10-18 01:19
  This is scary... What if the FBI gave me a fake fork, knife, and hotsauce so when I attempt to eat children, it doesn't work?
• RebeccaBlack wrote on 2012-10-18 05:21
  I dunno, I conceptually understand what you guys are saying, but he still came here to bomb the fuck out of something and, when given the option to do exactly that, took it.
  
  I understand your concerns, but bombing is kind of a violent and catastrophic event and (in this case anyway) was initiated entirely by the individual. If anything, it's good that they at least gave him the option to prove he was going to do it first instead of straight up arresting him, which I'm sure they could've with how he was openly planning to do this and seeking explosives.
• Yoorah wrote on 2012-10-18 05:25
  I was referring to this: http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120917/05193620404/fbi-continues-to-foil-its-own-devised-terrorist-plots.shtml
  But like I said, this op seems more legitimate.
• RebeccaBlack wrote on 2012-10-18 05:31
  I know you were talking about another incident, but I was referring to Reality's post and also the general idea that this might not have been fair or justified.