Man arrested for Times Square bomb plot

NEW YORK (FOX 5 NY) - The FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force arrested a New York man for plotting to throw a grenade in Times Square, said authorities.

Ashiqul Alam, 22, of Queens, allegedly spoke about the Islamic State and repeatedly expressed interest in buying weapons and explosives for a terrorist attack in New York City, according to the criminal complaint.

Officials said Alam's statements were "aspirational" and never reached a stage that endangered the public.

An undercover law enforcment officer said he met with Alam from August 2018 to June 6, 2019.

The Bangladesh native was arrested late Thursday after trying to buy two firearms fom an undercover agent with their serial numbers scratched off.

Alam was due in federal court in Brooklyn Friday.

Times Square has been a target of attacks before.

An Islamic militant tried to detonate a car bomb there in 2010.

In 2017, a man detonated a bomb in a tunnel linking the square to a bus terminal.

With the Associated Press