Man of K. Albanian origin planned terror attacks

Source: Tanjug

TAMPA -- A 25-year-old Kosovo Albanian, now a naturalized U.S. citizen, has been arrested in Florida for planning to commit terrorist attacks on U.S. soil.

The suspect was identified as Sami Osmakac.
Shortly before he was arrested, Osmakac recorded "an 8-minute farewell video message", in which he said he would carry out a massacre as retaliation for the crimes committed against Muslims.

The man is seen in the video sitting with a pistol in his hand, while an AK-47 assault rifle is seen in the background.

Osmakac several months ago contacted an FBI informant in a bid to buy weapons and explosives in order to attack night clubs, stores and a radio station in Tampa, Florida.

On December 21, he met with an FBI agent working under cover, and handed him over USD 500 as a down-payment to buy an AK-47s and an Uzi rifle, as well as a hand grenade and an explosives belt.

The U.S. Department of Justice said in a statement that the suspect asked the agent to help him manufacture three home-made bombs that he planned to plant in three vehicles and activate remotely.

Osmakac expressed his desire to plant explosives in a location frequented by many people, and to take hostages.

"Honestly, I'd like to enter a military base, but they're so closed that I must think of something else," the man was quoted as saying.

According to the authorities, he planned to leave the area "with ruined economy, without food, with people unable to reach work", by blowing up bridges that connect Tampa with a nearby county.

Executive Director of the Council for U.S.-Islamic Relations Hasan Shibli, who is also a lawyer working in Tampa, said he met with Osmakac briefly last summer, and describes him as someone "who knows nothing about the Islamic religion, doesn't speak Arabic, and knows nothing about the bases of Islamic teachings that promote peace".

Osmakac is now in custody without the possibility to be released on bail. If found guilty on just one count of the indictment against him, he could spend life in prison.

Meanwhile, U.S. reporters contacted his brother, who lives in a small town near Tampa, and runs a bakery called "Balkans".

The man claimed that accusations against his brother were "false", and that he was "innocent".