New York:
A Pakistani-American has been arrested in the US after he fell for an elaborate bomb plot set up by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in a sting operation that lasted more than six months.
The people that 34-year-old Farooque Ahmed thought were Al-Qaida operatives were actually FBI agents.
The unsuspecting Ahmed was made to carry out surveillance of sub way stations in the Washington area.
He also readily handed over video of northern Virginia subway stations, suggested using rolling suitcases rather than backpacks to kill as many people as possible and offered to donate money to Al-Qaida's cause overseas.
The public was never in any real danger because FBI agents were aware of Ahmed's activities and monitored him throughout.
Ahmed has now been charged on several counts, the most serious of which is attempting to provide material support to carry out multiple bombings and cause mass casualties.