New York police today charged an ISIS-inspired Bangladeshi-origin man with supporting terrorism, a day after he triggered a blast with a crude homemade device at a metro station that injured three people.
Akayed Ullah, the 27-year-old suspected bomber, had wires and a pipe bomb strapped to his body. The device exploded prematurely yesterday between two subway platforms near Port Authority, which is America's largest bus terminal.
The New York Police Department tweeted that Ullah was charged with criminal possession of a weapon, supporting an act of terrorism and making a "terroristic threat".
Ullah is reported to be in a serious condition in hospital after suffering burns in the explosion. Three other people suffered minor wounds in the blast during rush hour.
The suspect was taken into custody after the device partially exploded.
Reports say he used piping, nails, a 9-volt battery and Christmas lights wire to build the device. It was affixed to his body with Velcro straps.
The suspect's home in the New York City borough of Brooklyn is being searched.
Ullah acted alone, police said, adding that the explosion was recorded on surveillance video.
According to a law enforcement official, through his comments to investigators, Ullah indicated he was prepared to die. The source also said the suspect was wired up with the self-made device during his entire trip on the subway system.
He had pledged allegiance to ISIS, according to one law enforcement official with direct knowledge of the investigation told CNN, and said he acted in response to Israeli actions in Gaza.
No group has claimed responsibility for the explosion so far, though it is being treated as terror-related.
John Miller, NYPD deputy commissioner for intelligence and counterterrorism, said Ullah was not on the FBI radar.
"This is an individual who came from Bangladesh, was living here, went through a number of jobs, was not particularly struggling financially or under any known pressure, who was not on our radar at the NYPD, not on the FBI radar, and he's somewhat characteristic of what we've been seeing across the world which is somebody who turns up one day out of the blue," Miller told CBS this morning.
Miller said it is difficult to stop a lone wolf attack.
"Where the conspiracy is within the confines of their own mind, and that's a very hard place to get to. When you combine that with the fact that now these [cellphone] devices are encrypted so if you bring it to the manufacturer with a court order, even they've designed it so that they can't open it," Miller said.
Ullah came to the US in 2011 from Bangladesh as part of the family visa. From 2012 to 2015 he had a city taxi driving license. He was currently working for an electric company.
"You find yourself increasingly behind the eight ball as the terrorist organisations seize on this and increase the breadth and space of that propaganda that's meant to reach those people who are searching for something," he said.
Miller said Ullah raised concerns about would-be terrorists' ability to make devices at home.
"If you look at what he attempted to make that bomb out of and what he attempted to make it into, it didn't function with the force and power that the recipe intended it to. I think what we saw yesterday was something that could have been far, far worse," Miller added.
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