Bronx Man Arrested At JFK Trying Fly Overseas, Join The Taliban Fighters Against U.S.
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - A Bronx man faces terror-related charges after being arrested at John F. Kennedy International Airport on Friday.
The U.S. Department of Justice said 33-year-old Delowar Mohammed Hossain of the Bronx was allegedly attempting to travel overseas to Afghanistan and join the Taliban in order to kill Americans.
Sources told CBS News there was no threat to our area.
Hossain appeared in federal court and was charged with attempting to provide material support for acts of terrorism, specifically in support of killing U.S. nationals located overseas.
The suspect had been monitored by the FBI for some time before his arrest around 10:30 a.m. on Friday, sources said.
Investigators say Hossain had been planning to join the terrorist organization since the fall of 2018. He attempted to recruit a confidential source of the FBI to arrange travel to Pakistan before crossing the border into Afghanistan.
Prosecutors say Hossain aimed to "fight the American government from there... combined with the Taliban," and that "I want to kill some kufars (non-believers) before I die."
Authorities said he also planned to first fly to Thailand before going to Pakistan in order to conceal his eventually destination. His fight from New York was bound for Thailand when he was arrested on Friday.
READ: Criminal Complaint Against Delowar Mohammed Hossain And Details Of Plan To Join Taliban
"The threat of terrorism at home and abroad remains, and the National Security Division is committed to preventing individuals from carrying out deadly plans such as this," said Assistant Attorney General John C. Demers.
Hossain was mostly stoic during a court hearing Friday afternoon, wearing a white "Guess" brand t-shirt and blue jeans with his feet shackled.
If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison. Hossain is being held pending a bail application that will be filed in his defense.
A hearing has been set for Aug. 26.
In February, a Manhattan man has been arrested at JFK airport after he allegedly tried to board a plane to join a terrorist group.