Portland Car Bomb Plot November 26: Mohamed Osman Mohamud Arrest

by Amy Judd | November 27, 2010 at 09:11 am

251 views | 0 Recommendations | 0 comments

Mohamed Osman Mohamud, a Somali-Born Teenager, Planned to Carry Out a Car Bomb Attack During a Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony at Portland's Pioneer Courthouse Square on Friday

The Portland car bomb was a dud as it was planted by undercover agents as part of a sting operation, but Mohamud thought it was real.

According to MSNBC, Mohamud, 19, was arrested at about 5:40pm, when he dialed a cell phone and expected to blow up a van with explosives inside.

Mohamud allegedly yelled 'Allahu Akhkbar' when the police came to arrest him and he tried to kick the FBI agents.

He will now appear in court on Monday, charged with attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction, and could face life in prison and a $250,000 fine.

This sting operation began back in June when an undercover FBI agent learned that Mohamud had been in contact with someone in Pakistan's Northwest Frontier region.

"The threat was very real. Our investigation shows that Mohamud was absolutely committed to carrying out an attack on a very grand scale," said Arthur Balizan, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in Oregon.

"At the same time, I want to reassure the people of this community that, at every turn, we denied him the ability to actually carry out the attack."

Mohamud is a naturalized U.S. citizen who has been living in Corvallis Oregon.

During the operation when Mohamud was talking to the undercover agent, who cautioned him that many children would be present at the tree lighting event, he allegedly replied that he wanted to target an event where families were celebrating the holidays.