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NIGERIAN/US JETBack
[Published: Saturday December 26 2009]

Nigerian charged with attack on US jet

Detroit, USA, 26 Dec –(ANA)- A Nigerian man has been charged with attempting to destroy a plane after he allegedly tried to detonate a bomb on a passenger jet arriving in the US.

Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, 23, was overpowered by passengers and crew shortly before the Northwest Airlines plane landed in Detroit from Amsterdam.

The US says the bomb consisted of a high explosive and a syringe.

A judge told Mr Abdulmutallab of the charges at a Michigan hospital where he is being treated for injuries.

He was formally charged with attempting to destroy the plane and with placing a destructive device on the aircraft.

Mr Abdulmutallab reportedly told investigators he had links to al-Qaeda and had received the explosives in Yemen.

US network ABC is reporting that Mr Abdulmutallab has apparently given investigators detailed information about his month-long training by al-Qaeda.

The explosives were sewn into his underwear in Yemen, ABC reported, for what was supposed to be a suicide attack.

Nigeria has ordered its security agencies to investigate the incident and said they will "co-operate fully" with the US investigations.

Members of a wealthy Nigerian family have confirmed to journalists that he is the son of the former chairman of First Bank of Nigeria.

The Dutch counter-terrorism agency NCTB said the suspect boarded a KLM flight from Lagos to Amsterdam's Schipol airport, then connected to the Northwest Airlines flight to Detroit.

A preliminary investigation found that security procedures were followed correctly, and the man had a valid US visa.

The NCTB said in a statement it could not rule out the potential for dangerous items to pass through security, especially objects that current security technology cannot detect.

Meanwhile, police in London are searching a house where Mr Abdulmutallab is thought to have lived.

University College London said it had a student with a similar name enrolled on a mechanical engineering course until mid-2008, but could not confirm whether this was the same person being questioned by US authorities. (ANA)

FA/ANA/26 December 2009---

 


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