In a meeting with the FBI agents, Ferdaus “appeared gratified” when he was told, falsely, that the first phone was used in an attack that killed three U.S. soldiers in Iraq and and injured four or five others. After he handed over each successive phone, he wanted to know how the devices had performed, according to the affidavit.
Attempts to reach Ferdaus’s family in Ashland were unsuccessful.
Ferdaus had an initial appearance in federal court in Worcester, Mass., on Wednesday and is scheduled to have a detention hearing Monday.
“I want the public to understand that Mr. Ferdaus’s conduct, as alleged in the complaint, is not reflective of a particular culture, community or religion,”said Carmen M. Ortiz, the U.S. attorney for Massachusetts.
Rep. Peter T. King (R-N.Y.), chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, said the case demonstrated a need for broad vigilance. “The fact that Ferdaus is a very well-educated physicist should serve as a reminder to us that the threat of Islamic terrorism transcends socioeconomics and does not only emanate from the poor and underprivileged.”
In January 2011, the FBI alleged, Ferdaus told the cooperating witness about his plans. “It’s a small, drone aircraft that would be programmed at that target . . .that can carry a good enough payload and it will detonate on impact,” Ferdaus said, according to the affidavit. At a separate meeting, Ferdaus showed the cooperating witness the “electrical components and remote-controlled cars that he built and said he “used to be into robotics.”
In March, the cooperating witness introduced Ferdaus to the two undercover agents who referred to Osama bin Laden as “our boss.” One of the agents is referred to in the affidavit as “Brother Hussein.”
Ferdaus told the agents that he been considering for some time using drones to stage an attack. Drones have been considered by other American militants. Christopher Paul, an Ohio native who joined al-Qaeda and pleaded guilty in 2008 to conspiracy, researched remote-controlled model helicopters and remote-controlled boats, according to law enforcement officials.
After his trip to Washington, Ferdaus presented the agents with a detailed plan, annotated with numerous pictures, on two thumb drives. The plan contained an introductory “abstract,” and various sections including “Hardware and Aircraft configuration” and “Software Overview.” The FBI described it as “extremely detailed” and “well-written.”
Ferdaus rented a storage facility in Framingham to build the drones. He was taking delivery there of C-4 explosive and AK-47 automatic weapons from the undercover officers when he was arrested.
Staff researcher Julie Tate contributed to this report.
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