Man charged in plot to attack White House with anti-tank rocket

[webfact]

Man charged in plot to attack White House with anti-tank rocket

By Andrew Hay

 

The White House is seen with the Washington Monument (L) behind it and the Jefferson Memorial (R) in Washington, May 1, 2011. REUTERS/Gary Hershorn/Files

 

(Reuters) - A 21-year-old man from Georgia has been arrested and charged over allegations he plotted to attack the White House by blowing a hole in it with an anti-tank rocket then storming the building with guns and grenades, U.S. prosecutors said on Wednesday.

 

Hasher Jallal Taheb, of the Atlanta suburb of Cumming, was arrested in Gwinnett County on Wednesday and appeared briefly in federal court in Atlanta in a case brought by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Byung Pak, the U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Georgia, told reporters.

 

"His alleged intent was to attack the White House and other targets of opportunity in the Washington, D.C., area by using explosive devices, including an improvised explosive device, an anti-tank rocket," Pak said.

 

All threats have been neutralized, Pak said in a statement.

 

It was not clear whether Taheb had a lawyer.

 

A criminal complaint said around March 2018 a community member contacted law enforcement to say Taheb had become "radicalized." On Aug. 25, 2018, Taheb put his vehicle up for sale and an FBI informant showed interest in buying it, the complaint said.

 

Taheb later told the informant "he wished to conduct an attack in the United States against targets such as the White House and the Statue of Liberty," according to the complaint.

 

Taheb told the informant "jihad was the best deed in Islam and the peak of Islam," the complaint said.

 

At a December 2018 meeting with an undercover FBI agent, Taheb said he wanted to do as much damage as possible and he expected to become a "martyr." Taheb told the agent to acquire weapons and explosives for the White House attack.

 

Later that month he told the agent he also planned to attack the Washington Monument, the Lincoln Monument and a synagogue.

 

He wanted to use semi-automatic weapons, an "AT-4" anti-tank weapon and hand grenades, the complaint said. It said Taheb hoped to carry out the attack on or about Jan. 17, together with the agent and the informant.

 

"He described his plan to use the AT-4 to blow a hole in the White House so that the group could enter," FBI Special Agent Tyler Krueger said in an affidavit. "His plan was to go in and take down as many (people) as they possibly could."

 

He was arrested on Jan. 16 when he met another undercover agent to supposedly obtain weapons and explosives.

 

(Reporting by Andrew Hay; editing by G Crosse, Leslie Adler and Grant McCool)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2019-01-17

[keith101]

What else can you expect with that idiot Trump in place and putting so much financial burdon on people with his government shutdown i am actually surprised hes still alive after all the lies and crap this Putin employee is doing to America and the world .

AND all you Trump lovers out there i dont give a flying <deleted> what youve got to say i have freedom of speech and be reading any of your crap replies .

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

Yes, but if we had Trump's Mexico wall, it obviously would have stopped this terrorist from getting into the country....  (from Georgia!)  

[Basil B]

I suppose ownership of such items is allowed under the Second Amendment...

[TopDeadSenter]

6 minutes ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

Yes, but if we had Trump's Mexico wall, it obviously would have stopped this terrorist from getting into the country....  (from Georgia!)  

Is there any info on where this islamic terrorist was born? Every article just states a "man from Georgia" . Normally we get some background on the terrorist, why not in this case. If indeed he was born abroad and came to the US illegally over the southern border or some refugee program I want to hear about it too.

 Note the first relies are all blaming Trump for this islamic jihad ideology ergo some people have no idea whatsoever about what they speak.

[DNPBC0]

If jihadists were targeting Trump, this wasn't one of their best ideas - he's their top recruiting agent.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

9 minutes ago, TopDeadSenter said:

 

 Note the first relies are all blaming Trump for this islamic jihad ideology ergo some people have no idea whatsoever about what they speak.

 

I can't find any info right now on where the suspect is from (beyond being a Georgia resident at the time of his arrest), born in the U.S. or abroad, etc etc... I'm sure it will come out eventually...

 

Suffice to say, he's not a Mexican or Central American gang member, and I very much doubt he originally came into the U.S. from across the Mexico border -- in the event he's not native born in the U.S.  He's only 21 years old.

 

But when it comes to fighting Islamic terrorism, Trumps doing a great job -- trying to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria and Afghanistan and talking about wanting to withdraw the U.S. from NATO -- all the while wanting to spend billions on a wall to keep the "brown people" out from Mexico.  He's certainly got his priorities in the right place!

 

 

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

6 minutes ago, DNPBC0 said:

If jihadists were targeting Trump, this wasn't one of their best ideas - he's their top recruiting agent.

 

Well, Trump does love Saudi Arabia... because as he's said, the wealthy Arabs like to buy his condos and stay in his hotels... So he's definitely got that connection.

 

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

18 minutes ago, Basil B said:

I suppose ownership of such items is allowed under the Second Amendment...

 

I think thanks to Trump, the Republicans and the Russia-supported NRA, he would have been good for everything except for the anti-tank rocket...  

 

But give them time, I'm sure there's an argument to be made that anti-tank rocket possession is protected by the 2nd Amendment...

 

[NanLaew]

28 minutes ago, TopDeadSenter said:

Is there any info on where this islamic terrorist was born? Every article just states a "man from Georgia" .

What info? I would guess that Hasher Jallal Taheb is an American so 'from Georgia' is quite sufficient.

 

From this, "The tipster told authorities that Taheb was “radicalized, changed his name, and made plans to travel abroad,” according to the local news station."

 

28 minutes ago, TopDeadSenter said:

If indeed he was born abroad and came to the US illegally over the southern border or some refugee program I want to hear about it too.

When it comes down to suspicion of people with un-American names, how about Byung Pak, the U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Georgia? Doesn't sound very American to me either. Maybe his folks swam the Rio Grande as well?

[Basil B]

14 minutes ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

 

I think thanks to Trump, the Republicans and the Russia-supported NRA, he would have been good for everything except for the anti-tank rocket...  

 

But give them time, I'm sure there's an argument to be made that anti-tank rocket possession is protected by the 2nd Amendment...

 

 

So how do you get your hands on such an item?

[Odysseus123]

4 minutes ago, Basil B said:

 

So how do you get your hands on such an item?

By contacting the FBI apparently...

[from the home of CC]

surprised he didn't ask for a tactical nuke to ensure he got him..

[UASCB500BIKER]

100,000 Love TRUMP, TRUMP forever !!! TRUMP Rules !!!

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

16 minutes ago, Odysseus123 said:

By contacting the FBI apparently...

 

Better the dude ended up trying to buy his anti tank rocket from the FBI (which had disabled all the weapons it was showing the guy), vs. him actually finding his way to buy and use a real working one from somewhere...

 

[PatOngo]

30 minutes ago, Basil B said:

 

So how do you get your hands on such an item?

Don't they sell them at Wallmart?

[yogi100]

49 minutes ago, keith101 said:

What else can you expect with that idiot Trump in place and putting so much financial burdon on people with his government shutdown i am actually surprised hes still alive after all the lies and crap this Putin employee is doing to America and the world .

AND all you Trump lovers out there i dont give a flying <deleted> what youve got to say i have freedom of speech and be reading any of your crap replies .

 

It seems Trump haters will only be happy when there's another 9/11 or the USA experiences an atrocity like the Manchester Arena and the London bombings, the Paris massacre or the Nice lorry rampage.

 

They might change their tune then but it's unlikely because their hatred of their president is stronger that any fear they may have of a terrorist attack.

 

Short memories.

[milwaukeeboy]

He was probably acting out on a long suppressed anger over the war of northern aggression.

The south will rise again!

 

[farcanell]

1 hour ago, yogi100 said:

 

It seems Trump haters will only be happy when there's another 9/11 or the USA experiences an atrocity like the Manchester Arena and the London bombings, the Paris massacre or the Nice lorry rampage.

 

They might change their tune then but it's unlikely because their hatred of their president is stronger that any fear they may have of a terrorist attack.

 

Short memories.

Not so.... I’m happy to despise trump for many and varied reasons, but would  absolutely hate to see any atrocity caused by his presidency... or anything else, for that matter

 

I fail to see how you can accuse anti trumpists of such a feelings.... perhaps that says more about your trumpist mindset, than any one else’s.... even the poster you quoted merely expressed an opinion that it didn’t surprise, which is a long way away from being happy about it.

[farcanell]

2 hours ago, TopDeadSenter said:

Is there any info on where this islamic terrorist was born? Every article just states a "man from Georgia" . Normally we get some background on the terrorist, why not in this case. If indeed he was born abroad and came to the US illegally over the southern border or some refugee program I want to hear about it too.

 Note the first relies are all blaming Trump for this islamic jihad ideology ergo some people have no idea whatsoever about what they speak.

“If indeed he was born abroad and came to the US illegally over the southern border..... “

 

why on earth would you start there, other than to spread disinformation? “If indeed” indeed.

 

statistics clearly show that your scenario is highly unlikely, as most acts of violence with the US are committed by US citizens... and this seems to be another example of that, as media sources have claimed that he is an American without a passport. (Which I see as a US citizen who has never left the US)

[Jingthing]

2 hours ago, keith101 said:

What else can you expect with that idiot Trump in place and putting so much financial burdon on people with his government shutdown i am actually surprised hes still alive after all the lies and crap this Putin employee is doing to America and the world .

AND all you Trump lovers out there i dont give a flying <deleted> what youve got to say i have freedom of speech and be reading any of your crap replies .

He has really good security like any president and he specifically avoids any kind of groups that might include people that aren't fans. So that's why. 

[Jingthing]

2 hours ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

Yes, but if we had Trump's Mexico wall, it obviously would have stopped this terrorist from getting into the country....  (from Georgia!)  

Build a wall around Atlanta!

[Jingthing]

44 minutes ago, milwaukeeboy said:

He was probably acting out on a long suppressed anger over the war of northern aggression.

The south will rise again!

 

Bless his dear heart. Do y'all want sweet tea with your deep fried cake?

[Jingthing]

1 hour ago, UASCB500BIKER said:

100,000 Love TRUMP, TRUMP forever !!! TRUMP Rules !!!

Sorry to break it you snookums. For now yes but not forever. 

[Catoni]

45 minutes ago, milwaukeeboy said:

He was probably acting out on a long suppressed anger over the war of northern aggression.

The south will rise again!

 

God bless Jefferson Davis and Robert E. Lee. 

[Odysseus123]

2 hours ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

 

Better the dude ended up trying to buy his anti tank rocket from the FBI (which had disabled all the weapons it was showing the guy), vs. him actually finding his way to buy and use a real working one from somewhere...

 

'twas a wry joke..

 

Next time I shall use all the 57 emoticons as a back stop.

[TopDeadSenter]

14 minutes ago, farcanell said:

why on earth would you start there, other than to spread disinformation? “If indeed” indeed.

Because in the new world, since year 2000, in the mainland USA the hugely overwhelming number of fatalities and injuries from terrorism have been caused by islamists born abroad. That, put together with this lads name and the total lack of any history of the terrorist sets off alarm bells ringing. 

 A more plausible scenario than him suffering from Trump derangement syndrome as most posters on the thread are claiming(and possibly suffering from also:) )

[Jingthing]

10 minutes ago, Catoni said:

God bless Jefferson Davis and Robert E. Lee. 

I think in the grand old confederacy they used to hang con men carpetbaggers from New York. 

[simple1]

1 hour ago, yogi100 said:

 

It seems Trump haters will only be happy when there's another 9/11 or the USA experiences an atrocity like the Manchester Arena and the London bombings, the Paris massacre or the Nice lorry rampage.

 

They might change their tune then but it's unlikely because their hatred of their president is stronger that any fear they may have of a terrorist attack.

 

Short memories.

You have completely spun the posters words. The poster was saying he's surprised trump hasn't been assassinated, not that he was wishing for a mass casualty terror attack.

 

Considering trump's habit of insulting nations / peoples, golf trips etc etc It would be interesting to know the cost versus that for Obama for trump's protection by US security services,

[Jingthing]

Hey CNN is based in Atlanta, right? Maybe the terrorist got his marching orders from the free press enemy of the people?

 

BTW, of course the guy deserved to be arrested, but I'm curious, is this one of those "setup" show arrests where they kind of entrap people that actually have zero capability of carrying out what they are charged with, or did he really potentially have the capability?