A New Jersey man is under arrest on terror charges after holding discussions about bombing Trump Tower and New York City’s Israeli Consulate, according to NBC 4 report, citing law enforcement sources.
The suspect, 20-year-old Jonathan Xie of Basking Ridge, was taken into police custody Wednesday morning on charges stemming from attempting to provide material support to a designated terror group, making a threat of interstate commerce, and making false statements. NBC 4 further reports the man made false statements to enlist in the U.S. military and transferred funds overseas to aid Hamas terrorists. Xie is said to have also issued a series of threats to “pro-Israel” organizations in the U.S.
NBC 4 reports:
Prosecutors say he went as far as completing a Security Clearance Application for National Security Positions in February and answered “no” to the question “Have you ever associated with anyone involved in activities to further terrorism.” An error occurred in the application processing and he had to do it again 10 days later. Again, he answered no to that question. […]
Last month, FBI surveillance saw Xie outside Trump Tower in Manhattan. Shortly thereafter, according to Instagram records, he posted two photos to his account, one with the words “[S]hould I bomb Trump Tower,” a “Yes/No” poll and an emoji of a bomb imposed over the Trump Tower building image.
In a follow-up post, criminal complaint records say the suspect then posted on Instagram, writing: “Okay, so I went to NYC today and passed by Trump Tower and then I started laughing hysterically . . . s*** I forgot to visit the Israeli embassy in NYC … i want to bomb this place along with trump tower.”
He is scheduled to appear in federal court in Newark in the coming hours, law enforcement sources told NBC 4.
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