Kansas man accused of suicide bomb plot at Army base
KANSAS CITY, Kan. -- A 20-year-old man has been charged with planning a suicide bomb attack against the Fort Riley military base in Kansas, in an alleged plot to support the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), federal prosecutors said Friday.
John T. Booker, of Topeka, was arrested Friday morning while trying to arm what he thought what a 1,000-pound bomb inside a van near the base, according to court documents.
Prosecutors allege that Booker first met with an undercover FBI agent in October and expressed desire to engage in violent jihad on behalf of the terrorist group. The two met several times over the next several months, with Booker discussing ideas for killing Americans, according to the criminal complaint, which states that Booker told the informant that the act was permitted by because the Quran "says to kill your enemies wherever they are."
Booker also allegedly told the informant that he wanted to make a video threatening Americans and warning them to get their relatives and friends to quit the military. He said his intent was to "scare this country" and to tell the people that, "we will be coming after American soldiers in the streets ... we will be picking them off one by one," according to the court documents.
A second Topeka man was also arrested Friday and charged with failing to report Booker's plans to authorities. A criminal complaint alleges that Alexander E. Blair, 28, shared some of Booker's "extremist views" and that he had loaned Booker money to rent a storage unit in which to build and store a bomb.
On March 15, 2014, the criminal complaint alleges, Booker publicly posted on Facebook: "I will soon be leaving you forever so goodbye! I'm going to wage jihad and hopes that i die."
The FBI said there was no breach at Fort Riley, which is about 100 miles west of Kansas City.
Booker is charged with attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction, attempting to damage property by means of an explosive, and attempting to provide material support to the terrorist group. If convicted, he could face life in prison.
The FBI has focused attention in the last year on individuals who profess allegiance to ISIS and who either make plans to fight alongside jihadists in Syria or commit acts of violence in the United States.
U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom said Booker was arrested near Manhattan, a city that borders the base.
"We face a continued threat from individuals within our own borders who may be motivated by a variety of reasons," Grissom said. "Anyone who tries to harm this nation and its people will be brought to justice."
Booker, who also goes by the name Mohammed Abdullah Hassan, is the seventh individual to be charged with material support in the last 10 days, CBS News' Paula Reid reports.
On Thursday, a Wisconsin man accused of traveling to the Middle East in a failed attempt to join ISIS was been ordered held without bond.
Last week, a Phildaelphia woman was arrested on charges she tried to join and martyr herself for ISIS, a day after two women in New York were charged with plotting to wage jihad by building a bomb and using it for a Boston Marathon-type attack.
Federal prosecutors said last month that U.S. Air Force veteran Tairod Pugh plotted to travel to Syria to join ISIS and was arrested on terrorism charges.
Also last month, federal prosecutors said an Illinois Army National Guard soldier vowed to bring "the flames of war to the heart" of America if he was unable to get to the Middle East to join ISIS and his cousin bragged he could kill up to 150 people in a terrorist attack in the U.S.
And in February, three Brooklyn residents were formally charged with providing material support to ISIS.