Times Square bomb suspect spoke with Pakistani army major: investigators

ISLAMABAD - Pakistani and U.S. investigators cited growing evidence Saturday that a Pakistani army major had been in cell phone contact with the man who allegedly attempted to bomb Times Square, including the possibility that they spoke shortly before the failed bombing.

U.S. officials said they were aware of cell phone traffic between Faisal Shahzad and the unidentified Pakistani military officer, bolstering reports days earlier from Pakistani law enforcement sources.

A Pakistani law enforcement source said the major had cell phone contact with Shahzad on May 1, the day of the botched bombing, including a conversation that occurred as the Pakistani-born naturalized U.S. citizen was parking his SUV rigged with propane tanks, fertilizer and fireworks.

Investigators are keenly interested in the major's role in the failed bombing attempt because he had more than one cell phone conversation with Shahzad from the time he loaded his Nissan Pathfinder with bomb components to the moment he parked the vehicle and walked away, said the Pakistani source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak about the investigation.

U.S. officials said they could not confirm that timing of the conversations between Shahzad and the major. U.S. investigators have limited information about the major, who is in custody in Pakistan, and are negotiating with the Pakistani government to interrogate him, they said.

The major is one of at least six people detained in Pakistan for alleged ties to Shahzad. The Associated Press reported Saturday that two of the men admitted with pride that they helped Shahzad, and one of them angrily accused his interrogators of "siding with the infidels," a senior intelligence official said.

One of the suspects, identified as Shoaib Mughal, is alleged to be a go-between for Shahzad and the Pakistani Taliban in their hide-outs close to the Afghan border. He was running a large computer dealership in Islamabad before his detention, said the intelligence official, who did not give his name.

The other suspect, identified only by his first name Shahid, is alleged to have helped arrange money for Shahzad. He has an MBA from the United States and apparently knew Shahzad from his time there.

Investigators know of at least one meeting that occurred between the major and Shahzad in Pakistan's capital, Islamabad, sometime in 2009, the Pakistani source said. Authorities have previously said they believe that Shahzad arrived in Pakistan from the U.S. last summer and later went to Pakistan's tribal areas, where he underwent training in bomb-making at a Taliban camp.