Photo by SpecialKRBThe FBI arrested a man this afternoon believed to be planning a suicide attack on the U.S. Capitol, The Washington Post reports. The man, who is said to be of Moroccan descent, was arrested not far from the building in an FBI sting operation.
Via the Post:
“The arrest was the culmination of an undercover operation during which the suspect was closely monitored by law enforcement,” [Justice Department spokesman Peter] Carr said in a statement. “Explosives the suspect allegedly sought to use in connection with the plot had been rendered inoperable by law enforcement and posed no threat to the public.”
Police have said that members of Congress, their staffs and the public never faced any danger.
Details of today’s arrest and the nature of the alleged plot are still emerging, though what is known so far sounds considerably more low-tech than another recent bust on a potential attack on the Capitol. The man arrived at the sting wearing what he believed to be an explosive-laden vest. Last September, meanwhile, FBI agents arrested a Massachusetts man suspected of plotting to use GPS-guided airplanes to attack the Capitol and the Pentagon.
UPDATE 4:15 p.m.: More information on the would-be attacker and the investigation that led to his arrest has been released. From the Post:
Amine el-Khalifi, 29, was picked up while carrying an inoperable gun and a fake suicide vest provided to him by undercover FBI agents posing as al-Qaeda associates, U.S. officials said. They said he entered the United States when he was 16 and was living as an illegal immigrant in Arlington, Va., having reportedly overstayed his visitor’s visa for years.
Khalifi was arrested in a parking garage on Constitution Avenue NW a few blocks from the Capitol following a year-long investigation, officials said.
