His uncovered face was clearly captured by surveillance cameras near the spot of the blast.
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There has been no claim of responsibility for the bombings in Manhattan or New Jersey, but a jihadist-linked news agency, Amaq, claimed that an Islamic State “soldier” carried out the Minnesota attack, which left eight people injured.
Rahami was in hospital, shot in the leg during a shootout with police that saw him captured alive – images beamed across the nation of a bearded man wearing a T-shirt, his bloodied arm wrapped in a bandage as he was loaded into an ambulance while handcuffed to a stretcher.
He was charged with five counts of attempted murder of a law enforcement officer and on two unlawful weapon possession counts, Park announced. It is unclear exactly what the charges would be, but sources say they are likely related to use of IEDs.
Rahami, who was not on United States anti-terrorism databases, was later having surgery on his leg following a gunshot wound. When Rahami returned, he “got more religious” and dressed differently than before, Jones said.
Also on Saturday, a man who authorities say referred to Allah wounded nine people in a stabbing rampage at a Minnesota mall before being shot to death by an off-duty police officer.
The arrest of a suspect in connection with weekend bombings was the culmination of classic police work, bystander intervention, and incompetence on behalf of the suspect himself.
In the immediate aftermath of the New York bombing, de New York Mayor Bill de Blasio and Cuomo were careful to say there was no evidence of a link to global terrorism.
Rahami wasn’t on any terror or no-fly watch lists, a law enforcement official said, but he’d been interviewed by officials for immigration purposes.
In 2011, the Rahamis sued the city of Elizabeth and several police officers, alleging that police were harassing them and inappropriately citing them for keeping their restaurant open past 10pm. The lawsuit was terminated in 2012 because one of the brothers, Mohammed K. Rahami, had pleaded guilty to blocking police from enforcing restrictions on the restaurant.
After this trip, Rahami grew a beard and became more serious and quiet, Flee Jones, a childhood friend, told Reuters.
Ryan McCann, of Elizabeth, said that he often ate at the restaurant and recently began seeing Ahmad Rahami working there more. He’s a very friendly guy, that’s what’s so scary.
On Saturday morning, a pipe bomb exploded in town of Seaside Park in New Jersey.
Police suspect Rahami was also behind a bomb that exploded in a New Jersey beach town on Saturday, as well as leaving the device found on the sidewalk after the NY blast.
A second pressure cooker bomb was found four blocks away but did not explode.
Investigators are still gathering evidence and have not publicly tied Rahami to those devices, though Sweeney noted they aren’t “ruling anything out”. The officials spoke to the Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the case.
The backpack with five bombs inside was found in a wastebasket around 9:30 p.m. on Sunday outside a neighborhood pub in Elizabeth, about 16 miles from New York City. Federal Bureau of Investigation and other law enforcement descended on an Elmora Avenue home early Monday morning where Rahami either now lives or used to live. And none of the five, described as family members and people familiar with the suspect, were detained further after questioning.
Mayor de Blasio said Monday that NYPD would be “vigilant and visible” after Rahami’s arrest.
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An officer arrived and confronted Rahami, who pulled a gun and fired, authorities said.
