.:mindelusion:.

The father of the Nigerian man charged with trying to blow up a transatlantic jet on Christmas day contacted the US government about his concerns. US sources confirm a file was opened however 23-year-old Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab was not placed on a “do not fly” list. Since this attack, airports worldwide have increased security measures. Abdulmutallab was charged at a Michigan hospital while being treated for burn wounds from the device he was attempting to detonate. The explosives are believed to have been molded to his body and sewn into his underpants. He was quickly overpowered by passengers and crew aboard the flight, just before it was due to land in Detroit. The suspect was charged with placing a destructive device on the Airbus 330, which was carrying 289 passengers and crew, and attempting to destroy the jet. Alhaji Umaru Mutallab the suspects father, is a prominent banker in Nigeria and became concerned about the political views of his son, who was a recent engineering graduate of the University College London. The father approached the US embassy in November to express his concern about his son.

One of the most troubling questions in this case is how the suspect obtained a valid US travel visa and boarded a flight in Lagos to Amsterdam despite being on a watch list.

“Officials in Washington, speaking on condition of anonymity, told news agencies that Mr Abdulmutallab’s name had been added to a security watch-list of more than half a million individuals, known as Terrorist Identities Datamart Environment (Tide). But there was apparently not enough information to include his name on the smaller Terrorist Screening Data Base, which includes a no-fly list. It is understood that members of Mr Abdulmutallab’s family are travelling to the Nigerian capital Abuja on Sunday to meet police and government officials.”

An initial FBI analysis found that Mr. Abdulmutallab’s device contained the high explosive PETN, also known as pentaerythritol. PETN was used in the device worn by British “shoe bomber” Richard Reid, who is serving a prison sentence for attempting to blow up a Paris-Miami airliner in Christmas week of 2001.

“Mr Abdulmutallab allegedly tried to detonate a device using a syringe, but it failed to go off.
The suspect has reportedly told investigators he had links to al-Qaeda and received the explosives in Yemen for a suicide attack, after a month of training.

Mr Abdulmutallab went to the bathroom for about 20 minutes before the incident, court documents say.
When he got back to his seat, he said he had an upset stomach and pulled a blanket over himself, the affidavit continues.

‘Passengers then heard popping noises similar to firecrackers, smelled an odour, and some observed Abdulmutallab’s pants, leg and the wall of the airplane on fire,’ the Department of Justice said in a statement.
Dutch tourist Jasper Schuringa, credited with tackling the suspect first, is being hailed as a hero by fans on the internet.

The 32-year-old Dutch filmmaker said when he heard a bang and smelled smoke he felt immediately it was a terrorist attack.”

Shuringa later commented that Abdulmutallab did not become aggressive after his failed attack and described him to the BBC as: “He was actually a normal person, he was very scared, he had a very frightened look, he wasn’t resisting or anything,”

Source: BBC News