The father of the man accused of planting bombs in New York and New Jersey says he contacted the FBI two years ago after he suspected his son of being a terrorist.
The son, Ahmad Khan Rahami, now faces several charges connected to the bombings and took inspiration from Osama bin Laden, according to a criminal complaint filed this week in federal court.
The isn’t the first time that a potential terrorist threat popped up on the FBI’s radar before an assault was launched. Federal authorities interviewed Omar Mateen twice before his deadly attack on an Orlando nightclub this summer, and Tamerlan Tsarnaev drew the FBI’s attention before he and his brother placed pressure-cooker bombs at the Boston Marathon in 2013.
Host Phil Ponce talks about the way federal authorities assess risks with Jeffrey Cramer, a former federal prosecutor who worked on the Joint Terrorism Task Force. He is now a managing director with the security and investigation firm Berkeley Research Group.
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