News
Three arrested in Times Square probe
By: cnn.comPosted On: 05/14/2010 10:56 A
Three people from Pakistan were taken into custody Thursday in raids in the Northeast by federal agents in connection with the failed Times Square car bombing, sources close to the investigation said.
Two individuals were taken into custody in Massachusetts, with a third arrested in Maine.
One focus of the probe, according to a source close to the investigation, is a system of "cash couriers" who bring money into the United States from overseas, a method thought to help finance operations like the attempted Times Square attack.
A statement from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement confirmed that three people were taken into custody on alleged immigration violations, but provided no further details.
Two individuals have been under surveillance at least since Wednesday in connection with a cash courier system involving the Times Square bombing attempt, a source close to the investigation said, but the source could not confirm that they were two of the three individuals taken into custody Thursday.
Two of those arrested Thursday are so-called "visa overstays." Another was in the process of being removed from the United States, but had not yet been ordered removed, as he was attempting to adjust his status so that he could stay in the country, the official said.
Attorney General Eric Holder said Thursday that those arrested are tied to Faisal Shahzad, the Pakistani American charged in the May 1 attempted bombing at Times Square, though the exact nature of the relationship is unclear.
"These are people who are connected to Mr. Shahzad -- we're not sure what the connection was," Holder said on a conference call about an unrelated health care initiative. "There is at least a [basis] to believe that one of the things that they did was to provide him with funds, and so we are trying to trace back to see what exactly was the nature of those transactions."
A federal law enforcement source said the initial two people detained were connected to the case, but said they were "collateral" in the sense that they may not have had direct knowledge of or input into the Times Square plot.
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