The FBI arrested Harun Abdul-Malik Yener for allegedly planning to detonate an improvised explosive device (IED) outside the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).
Yener wanted to “reset” the U.S. government, according to court documents.
The documents explain that Yener believed the explosive device would lead to a ‘reboot’ and/or ‘reset’ of the United States government: ‘The Stock Exchange, we want to hit that, because it will wake people up.’”
Yener told undercover agents in March that he considered moving to Iraq to join ISIS in 2015.
He also planned to target other public locations, such as stadiums and schools.
“Yener discussed a hypothetical individual wearing a suicide vest inside a Walmart on Black Friday, inside a crowded football stadium during a football game, or in a school auditorium during a children’s Christmas play. Yener told the CS any of the aforementioned targets would be good targets because they would all be full of densely packed crowds of people, which would ensure maximum casualties,” the court document says.
The document adds that Yener “discussed how bombing a powerplant would greatly inconvenience local government and the community.” He said that “if one was interested in creating causalities, they might target a Walmart instead of a powerplant,” further explaining to a confidential source that “if one wanted to minimize civilian causalities, they could target the Walmart at night when the store is less crowded.”
The man also told authorities: “I feel like Bin Laden.”
