Ex-Marine held over Christmas attack plot in San Francisco

DONALD TRUMP, United States president LOS ANGELES: Federal agents arrested a former United States Marine on Friday for allegedly plotting a Christmas attack in San Francisco inspired by the Islamic State jihadist group, according to court documents.

Tow truck driver Everitt Aaron Jameson, 26, was planning to target the city’s busy Pier 39 tourist spot, according to an affidavit submitted by FBI Special Agent Christopher McKinney.

The suspect is said to have outlined to undercover agents how he wanted to use explosives to target crowds at the pier between Dec 18 and 25 because “Christmas was the perfect day to commit the attack”.

Jameson professed not to need an escape plan as he was “ready to die”, according to the document.

The suspect’s home in Modesto, California, was raided by FBI agents on Wednesday, where they allegedly found his last will and testament along with weapons and ammunition.

Jameson attended basic training with the Marine Corps in 2009 and graduated with a “sharpshooter” rifle qualification, according to the FBI, but was discharged after failing to disclose a history of asthma.

According to McKinney, Jameson selected Pier 39, which gets around 10 million visitors a year, because “he had been there before and knew it was a heavilycrowded area”.

“Jameson explained that he also desired to use explosives and described a plan in which explosives could ‘tunnel’ or ‘funnel’ people into a location where Jameson could inflict casualties,” McKinney stated. AFP