Terrorism charges filed against NYC subway bombing suspect
Xinhua,December 13, 2017 Adjust font size:
NEW YORK, Dec. 12 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. Attorney's Office in southern New York filed federal terrorism charges on Tuesday against a bombing suspect who was accused of detonating a pipe bomb at New York City's commuter hub during rush hour on Monday.
The suspect, 27-year-old Akayed Ullah, faces five charges ranging from using weapon of mass destruction to providing support to a terrorist organization, according to a court complaint filed on Tuesday.
Ullah, a U.S. lawful permanent resident from Bangladesh, admitted to investigators that he had built the pipe bomb and carried out the attack, the complaint said.
It also stated that Ullah had been inspired and radicalized by the ISIS extremist group.
"I did it for the Islamic State," he said, according to the complaint.
Moreover, prosecutors said in the charging document that before the morning attack, Ullah posted an update to his Facebook account on Monday that stated, "Trump you failed to protect your nation."
Acting U.S. Attorney Joon Kim said in a news conference on Tuesday that "In plotting his attack, Ullah had hoped to die in his own misguided rage, taking as many innocent people as he could with him."
"But through incredibly good fortune, his bomb did not seriously injure anyone," he added.
The attack, using a low-tech bomb strapped to Ullah's body, took place at around 7:20 a.m. local time in an underground passageway near the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Manhattan, wounding Ullah himself and injuring three others near him. Enditem