WASHINGTON — FBI agents who ensnared a suburban father in a terrorism sting involving a fictional subway bomb plot have turned their attention to figuring out what might have made the Pakistani-born U.S. citizen turn against his adopted country.
Law enforcement officials said they think Farooque Ahmed was radicalized in the United States, becoming the latest in a string of U.S. citizens radicalized here and charged with plotting terrorist attacks.
FBI agents were tipped off to Ahmed in January, when a source inside the Muslim community said the 34-year-old telecommunications worker was asking around, trying to join a terrorist group and kill Americans overseas, the officials said.
Since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, the FBI has tried hard to build relationships inside the Muslim community. The White House has made combating homegrown terrorism part of its national security strategy.
At a hearing Friday that lasted less than two minutes, Ahmed’s attorney said he would not contest pretrial detention. Ahmed, who wore a green prison jumpsuit and a full beard, said nothing.
Acting FBI Assistant Director John Perren said Ahmed is part of a growing trend of would-be terrorists who don’t receive formal training abroad and operate without direction from al-Qaeda leaders overseas.
