Plane attack suspect charged

DETROIT – A Nigerian man accused of trying to blow up a Northwest Airlines flight from Amsterdam to Detroit on Christmas Day was indicted on Wednesday on charges including attempted murder and trying to use a weapon of mass destruction to kill nearly 300 people.

Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, 23, was travelling from Amsterdam when he tried to destroy the plane by injecting chemicals into a package of pentrite explosive concealed in his underwear, authorities say.The failed attack caused popping sounds and flames that passengers and crew rushed to extinguish.The bomb was designed to detonate ‘at a time of his choosing’, the grand jury’s indictment said.President Barack Obama considers the incident an attempted strike against the United States by an affiliate of al Qaeda.Abdulmutallab has told US investigators he received training and instructions from al Qaeda operatives in Yemen. His father warned the US Embassy in Nigeria that his son had drifted into extremism in Yemen, but that threat was never fully digested by the US security apparatus.Since the failed attack, airlines and the Transportation Security Administration have boosted security in airports in the US and around the world. Obama has said the government had information that could have stopped Abdulmutallab, but intelligence agencies failed to connect the dots.Abdulmutallab faces up to life in prison if convicted of attempting to use a bomb on the plane. He will make his first appearance in federal court today for an arraignment and a hearing to determine if he stays in custody. – Nampa-AP