Pakistan holds gov't worker in Times Square plot
New York City Police stand guard outside of New York Federal Court awaiting the arraignment of Times Square bombing suspect Faisal Shahzad. (May 4, 2010) Credit: Getty Images
An employee at Pakistan’s state-run Islamic advisory body has been detained for allegedly playing an important role in assisting the failed New York Times Square car bomber, an intelligence officer said Thursday.
The suspect accompanied Faisal Shahzad, the Pakistan-American bomber, to Pakistan’s northwest to meet militant leaders, said the officer, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the intelligence agency does not permit its operatives to be named in the media.
The suspect, identified as Faisal Abbasi, was with Shahzad throughout his time in Pakistan, the officer said.
He said Abbasi worked for the government’s Council of Islamic Ideology, which advises on Islamic affairs.
The secretary general of the council confirmed Abbasi had worked there but had been on “vacation” for the last three months.
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