A Tunisian man has been charged with trying to scam a work visa so he could remain in the US and commit acts of terror — potentially including the use of bacteria to kill up to 100,000 people, the feds revealed today.
Ahmed Abassi was busted by the FBI on April 22, the same day the Canadian Mounties charged two men with plotting to derail an Amtrak train en route from Penn Station to Toronto.
Abassi, who previously lived in Canada, “radicalized” one of the alleged train plotters, Chiheb Esseghaier, and met with him in New York City after traveling here in mid-March, the feds said.
But Abassi was under surveillance at all times after arriving in the US and was also in “regular contact” with an undercover FBI agent who attended his meetings with Esseghaier.
During their discussions, Abassi said Esseghaier’s plans — which included derailing the train and poisoning a water system — “were good, but the time was not right,” according to Manhattan federal court papers.
“The defendant noted that he had suggested an alternative plot — contaminating the air or water with bacteria in order to kill up to 100,000 people — but that Esseghaier was dismissive of that plan,” court papers say.
Abassi, who the feds say voluntarily waived his Miranda rights after his arrest, “was questioned on a near-daily basis” by members of the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force for a week afterward.
He’s due in court this afternoon.