NY bomb suspect seized; denies link to terror outfit

WASHINGTON. May 5. KAZINFORM Federal agents and police detectives arrested a Connecticut man, a naturalized United States citizen born in Pakistan, early Tuesday in connection with the failed New York car bombing on Saturday night, Kazinform refers to Arab News.

photo: QAZINFORM

The man, Faisal Shahzad, recently bought the 1993 Nissan Pathfinder that was found loaded with gasoline, propane, fireworks, and fertilizer in the heart of Times Square, police told reporters.

Shahzad was thought to have been at his apartment in Connecticut Monday night when details began leaking in the media that the FBI was looking for a Pakistani American. This apparently spooked him and prompted him to try and run, although it is still unclear when he purchased his ticket to Pakistan via Dubai.

Shahzad's flight to Dubai had already pushed back from the gate and was forced to return, police told reporters and he was arrested at 11:45 Monday night at New York's JFK International Airport. Officials took three people off the Emirates Airline flight.

Officials said it was a disposable cell phone that led to the arrest of the 30-year-old, who has told investigators he is not connected to a larger terrorist organization, authorities said.

US Attorney General Eric Holder said authorities are hunting for other suspects, but did not give details. There are unconfirmed reports that at least three other people were involved in buying the bomb materials found in the Pathfinder.

The authorities began focusing on Shahzad after they tracked the vehicle to its previously registered owner, who had advertised it for sale on several websites. He paid cash, and the sale was handled without any formal paperwork.

Law enforcement officials were able to track down Shahzad, who became a US citizen last year, by recovering his number from the cell phone of the woman who sold him the SUV just weeks before Saturday night's failed bomb attempt.

Federal authorities provided few details about the arrest, the suspect, or the scope of any conspiracy in the failed attack.

Shahzad appeared in a Manhattan federal court late on Tuesday to face charges "for allegedly driving a car bomb into Times Square on the evening of May 1."

Shahzad was in Pakistan between July and August 2009, Pakistani police and intelligence officials said Tuesday. Pakistan promised to assist the US in its investigation. "We will cooperate with the United States in identifying this individual and bringing him to justice," Interior Minister Rehman Malik said.

Hours later, officials said police in Karachi had detained at least two people who may have been in contact with Shahzad. They were "picked up based on the telephone record of the New York accused," a Pakistani security official said.

President Barack Obama said America will not be intimidated. "We will not cower in fear," he said, while reacting to the failed attack. He said an investigation would seek to determine if the suspect had links to foreign extremist groups, Kazinform cites Arab News. See www.arabnews.com for full version.

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