Rahami, a 2007 graduate of Edison High School, allegedly committed a bombing that injured 31 people in the Chelsea section of Manhattan on Saturday night and another earlier that day along the route of a Marine Corps charity 5K run in Seaside Park, where no one was hurt. She was denied a visa as she was 35 weeks pregnant at the time, according to New Jersey congressman Albio Sires.
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Investigators said they have not been able to question him because he is too severely injured.
Public defender Peter Liguori, in a letter Thursday to a New Jersey Superior Court judge dated September 22, said Rahami’s father, Mohammad Rahami, asked for his office to represent his son. That suitcase apparently contained the second device Rahami is accused of leaving the city, which was discovered and neutralized by law enforcement officials on the scene after a Saturday night explosion wounded 29 people.
Pakistan’s foreign office offered new details Thursday about the background of Ahmad Khan Rahami, an Afghan-born US citizen who is charged with setting off homemade bombs in NY and New Jersey last weekend.
Mosque leaders called bombing suspect Ahmad Khan Rahami, an Afghanistan-born USA citizen whose father is an active member of the mosque, misguided and said people who follow extremist teachings are criminals.
The case is being treated by authorities as an act of terrorism, and while prosecutors now believe Rahami acted alone they are still searching for anyone who may have helped him plan the attack or build the homemade bombs. “Therefore, I will have no further comments at this time and kindly ask that you please respect my privacy and that of my family”. The federal complaint alleges that event took place two days before the bombings in New Jersey and NY, and describes how laughter is heard on the video before Rahami returns into the frame and is seen picking up the object. He has been unconscious and intubated for much of the time since undergoing surgery, said Robert Reilly, a spokesman for the FBI’s Newark office.
The federal complaints allege that Rahami was inspired by overseas terrorist groups and referred to the late Osama bin Laden as “brother”, based on writings found on his possession when he was arrested.
A bomb squad was called and removed the device, which was characterized by the Federal Bureau of Investigation as a pressure cooker containing an explosive charge as well as ball bearings and steel nuts.
Lynch said on Thursday that federal authorities were placing renewed scrutiny on the increasingly common practice of purchasing materials for homemade explosives on the Internet. Unlike her husband, Aziza Bibi Rahami has reportedly cooperated with police.
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This article includes information from USA TODAY.
