U.S. yet to verify suspect’s claimed terror training

Published 12:33 pm Wednesday, May 5, 2010

WASHINGTON — The U.S. has so far been unable to verify statements by the Times Square bombing suspect that he trained at a Pakistani terror camp and have not yet linked him to any terrorist group, law enforcement officials said today.

After his arrest Monday, authorities say, Faisal Shahzad told the FBI he trained in the lawless tribal region of Waziristan, which is home to several militant and terrorist groups. That stoked fears that the failed bombing was part of an international plot.

Investigators are trying to verify Shahzad’s statements. He is cooperating with investigators to the extent that they have delayed his initial court appearance.

But the crude car bomb that failed to detonate Saturday night did not demonstrate the kind of explosives training that terror groups normally provide ahead of a bombing operation, law enforcement officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the ongoing investigation.

New York Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said today that Shahzad apparently put his plan in motion in March, a month after he returned from Pakistan.

Any international organization that could take responsibility for the attack might try to claim it as a victory, even though the bomb failed to detonate. That’s because, like the failed Christmas Day airline bombing, it would demonstrate a group’s ability to carry out operations in the United States.

The Pakistani Taliban originally took responsibility for the Times Square bomb attempt, but officials have said there was no evidence that was true. Azam Tariq, a spokesman for the group, told CNN today that his group did not train Shahzad.