NYC Man arrested after Wanting to Shoot Up Times Square, use explosives and suicide vests

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A 22-year-old Queens man who lived with his parents and allegedly wanted to shoot up Times Square has been arrested after federal authorities who had been surveilling him say he tried to buy guns, prosecutors say.

The suspect, identified as Ashiqul Alam, of Jackson Heights, had been under surveillance by the New York FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF) for some time but his alleged efforts to buy two Glock 19 9mm semi-automatic pistols with removed serial numbers Thursday prompted his arrest, according to the criminal complaint revealed filed Friday in Brooklyn federal court.

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Federal law enforcement officials say Alam is not expected to face terrorism charges, though he allegedly made comments that were jihadist in nature as to why he allegedly wanted to target the Crossroads of the World. In a complaint filed Friday, investigators allege Alam praised the 9/11 attacks during a conversation with an undercover agent.

"The mission is a complete success, thousands of American soldiers died and trillions of their moneys are gone in the war,” he allegedly said.
Alam, of Bangladeshi descent, also allegedly made references to al Qaida and ISIS but did not pledge allegiance to the terror groups, a senior law enforcement official said. It is alleged he said he wanted to see the "flag of Islam on the Twin Towers or the Empire State Building."

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He is a legal permanent resident with a green card, sources say.

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