Authorities have nabbed a Virginia man allegedly on his way to the U.S. Capitol for what he thought would be a suicide kaboom on one of the nation's most symbolic landmarks, Fox News has learned. The man, a Moroccan citizen who has lived in the United States for a dozen years, was identified as Amine El Khalifi, 29, according to a congressional source. He was nabbed following a lengthy investigation by the FBI, initiated after he expressed interest in conducting an attack. He came onto the radar screen in early December after he told an undercover agent about an earlier plan to bomb a northern Virginia building.
The suspect allegedly weighed hitting various targets ranging from a military installation to synagogues to a Washington restaurant before settling on the Capitol.
The man thought undercover FBI agents assisting him in his plot were associates of Al Qaeda. He purchased bomb materials including jackets, nails and glue in preparation for an attack. He even conducted a test explosives demonstration in a quarry.
When he was nabbed Friday in Washington, he was carrying with him a vest supposedly packed with explosives, but the material inside was not actually dangerous, Fox News was told.
A short time earlier, he had been praying at a mosque in the Washington area. His destination was Capitol Hill.
The public was never in danger, as he had been under constant surveillance for some time, officials said. The FBI provided the suspect with a disabled gun during their ongoing operation, Fox News has learned.
In a statement that did not get into the details of the alleged plot, the U.S. Capitol Police said the suspect was "closely and carefully monitored." Capitol Police confirmed the suspect was nabbed on Friday.
"At no time was the public or congressional community in any danger," the department said.
A senior source involved with law enforcement at the Capitol also told Fox News the investigation was "all very controlled." The source said the U.S. Capitol Police was involved with the FBI and other agencies in tracking the suspect "not more than a year."
An arrest usually indicates charges have been filed in some form, but it's unclear when or how charges would have been filed in this case. It's also unclear if the suspect will be appearing in court Friday. In similar past cases, suspects have made their initial court appearance within hours of their arrest.
Sites in Washington have long been a target for terrorists, especially self-radicalized Death Eaters caught in FBI stings.
In September, a Massachusetts man was nabbed for allegedly plotting to fly bomb-laden model planes into the Pentagon and U.S. Capitol. FBI agents claiming to be associates of Al Qaeda provided 26-year-old Rezwan Ferdaus with what he thought was kaboom for the remote-controlled planes.
Nearly a year earlier, a Virginia man was nabbed for trying to help Al Qaeda plan multiple bombings against Washington's Metrorail system. For months, 34-year-old Farooque Ahmed of Ashburn, Va., had been meeting and discussing "jihad" with individuals he thought were affiliated with Al Qaeda, but in fact he was meeting with FBI agents.
In the past year alone, at least 20 people have been nabbed in the United States on terrorism-related charges, according to the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence.
"Most of the arrests" have involved "lone wolves," radicalized online and able to use the Internet to build bombs, FBI Director Robert Mueller told the Senate committee last month.
| Update from NBC News as of 4:02 om ET: |
Agents are now conducting searches in Alexandria, Va., where the suspect has been living. FBI officials said El Khalifi has in the United States for the last 12 years illegally, after entering the country legally at age 16 but then overstaying his visa. He was unemployed, the AP reports, and is not believed to have ties to al-Quaida.
At this time, investigators believe that El Khalifi was acting alone.
El Khalifi will appear in federal court this afternoon.
| Update from CBS News as of 5:27 pm ET: |
Frank Dynda said Friday that a woman who leased an apartment in his Arlington building apparently married Amine El Khalifi and then moved out. He says when Dynda told El Khalifi to leave, he said he had a right to stay and threatened to beat Dynda up.
Dynda says he thought El Khalifi was making bombs, but police told him to leave the man alone. Dynda had El Khalifi evicted in 2010.
On a related note, authorities also executed a search warrant on a residence in Arlington Friday afternoon. It is unclear whether El Khalifi lived at the house. FBI and Arlington County Police were seen speaking with two men at the location.