Officials in the United States said on Friday that a Pakistani-American teenager was planning to carry out an attack in New York on behalf of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria.
The 19-year-old, identified as Awais Chudhary, was produced in a federal court in New York and was charged with an attempt to provide information to the ISIS. He is currently in custody without bail.
According to reports, Chudhary was arrested after he allegedly texted undercover agents about his plans to carry out bomb attacks and stab people in locations near his home. He was texting them over a period of five-days when he displayed interest in carrying out ISIS-like attacks.
During his correspondence with the agents, he had also shared a screenshot of an IS terror manual. The manual was about places to strike and also instructions on how to stab victims and the ideal knife to use on such an occasion.
In a statement from the Department of Justice, Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C Demers said, "The defendant allegedly planned to conduct a deadly attack in New York on behalf of ISIS," Time reports.
He added, "The National Security Division, working with our partners, will remain vigilant in our efforts to identify, disrupt, and hold accountable those who would conduct a terrorist attack on our soil. I want to thank the agents, analysts, and prosecutors who are responsible for this case and prevented this defendant from carrying out his deadly plans."
Chudhary was detained on Thursday when he went to an online retail shop to pick up the items he had ordered to record the attacks. He allegedly "record the bloodshed in the hope of inspiring others to commit attacks", Richard Donoghue, the federal prosecutor said.
During the planning of the attack, which was almost done and all he had to do was carry it out, Chudhary had chosen many target locations including World's Marina Fair and several other locations, which had pedestrian overpasses on major roads.
