The FBI has arrested a 25-year-old Muslim extremist who was planning a terrorist attack in Tampa, Florida.
Sami Osmakac was caught with an AK-47, a pistol and explosives, as well as a car bomb that he purchased from an undercover agent, according to FBI officials. The weapons had been disarmed before the sale, officials said.
He was charged Monday in federal court with one count of attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction.
A source had reportedly tipped off officials on the tenth anniversary of the 9/11 Al Qaeda terrorist attack on America that Osmakac was looking for Al Qaeda flags.
A naturalized citizen from Kosovo in the former Yugoslavia, Osmakac had even produced an eight-minute video to be shown after the attack was over, explaining his motives for the operation. The footage shows Osmakac sitting on the floor, surrounded by weapons, saying Muslim blood is more valuable than that of non-believers, according to the court papers.
Osmakac allegedly also said he wanted “payback” for wrong that was done to Muslims and to bring terror to his “victims’ hearts” in Tampa. Among his reported targets were a sheriff’s office, a business and several crowded nightclubs.
The would-be terrorist allegedly told the undercover agent in a meeting last month that he wanted an explosive belt — similar to those used by suicide bombers — in order to kill the police officers who he believed would try to stop him during his attack.
“Once I have this… they can take me in five million pieces,” he allegedly said in a January 1 conversation with the FBI agent, confiding that he envisioned taking hostages in a rampage through the Tampa area.
“I want to do something terrifying, like one day, one night, something’s going to happen…. then six hours later, something else,” he allegedly told the undercover agent. “After all this money they’re spending for homeland security and all this…. this is going to terrify them.”