Afghan-born suspect hated everything about US

THE family of bombing suspect Ahmad Rahami once tried to sue local police over claims they were persecuted for being Muslim.

They alleged officers subjected them to a two-year ordeal of ‘selective enforcement’ based on their religion.

Rahami’s father Mohammad, 53, claimed police used ‘baseless’ complaints to shut down their fried chicken restaurant early in the evenings. They also alleged that locals racially abused them, saying: ‘Muslims don’t belong here’. The family, from Afghanistan, filed the lawsuit in 2011 and it reveals that the Rahamis have a long history of grievances with officials, police and residents in Elizabeth, New Jersey.

They appear to have tried to blend into the mostly white, blue collar town by naming their restaurant First American Chicken and lived above it.

But according to the FBI, Rahami hated both his neighbours and everything about the country he had made his home. Neighbours said Rahami, who had studied criminal justice at college, had worn western-style clothes but had switched to Muslim garb in recent months.

The New York Times reported that the 28year-old’s radicalisation began several years ago when he went back to Afghanistan. Upon his return he appeared to have changed his attitudes to the West, associates said.

Neighbour Ryan McCann, 33, said the bombing suspect was the ‘most friendly man you ever met’ and had a passion for racing Honda Civic cars. But Joshua Sanchez, 24, said Rahami was cold and ‘would never talk to you, he would just take your order’.

The lawsuit, which the family lost, claimed they were unfairly targeted from 2009 for keeping their diner open past 10pm despite being permitted to do so. Officers allegedly told them the area around the business was ‘known for criminal activity’.

Court records also reveal that Rahami Sr went bankrupt in 2005 with debts of £29,000.