By Shannon Corrigan
Federal authorities arrested a Moroccan man Friday for attempting to carry out a suicide bombing attack at the U.S. capitol, the Washington Post reports.
Amine Al Khalifi, 29, of Alexandria, Virginia, was arrested Friday in an underground parking ramp near the U.S. Capitol.
On Dec. 1, 2011 Khalifi was introduced to a man named Yusef, an undercover law enforcement agent, because he "sought to be associated with an armed extremist group," the Washington Post reports. He has since been under federal surveillance.
According to a criminal complaint, Khalifi first told Yusuf of his plans to carry out a "shooting rampage" in a restaurant. Then on Jan. 15, Khalifi said that he had changed his plans, and was going to execute a suicide bombing at the Capitol, the Washington Post reports.
As Khalifi began walking toward the Capitol carrying a MAC-10 automatic weapon and wearing a suicide vest, he was taken into custody, according to an affidavit by Steven Hersem, an FBI agent reported the Washington Post.
Khalifi is due in court Wednesday afternoon for a preliminary hearing. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of life in prison.
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