Authorities: U.S. agents thwart terror plot targeting New York

NEW YORK — Three Islamic State group sympathizers plotted to cause bloodshed at New York City concert venues, subway stations and Times Square before U.S. agents thwarted the international terror plot, authorities said yesterday.

One of the defendants, Abdulrahman El Bahnasawy, was arrested after traveling from Canada to New Jersey in May 2016 to stage the attacks, authorities said. The capture of the Canadian citizen came after an investigation using an undercover FBI agent posing as an Islamic extremist that also led to the arrests last year of U.S. citizen Talha Haroon in Pakistan and Russell Salic in the Philippines, where he’s a citizen.

According to criminal complaints, El Bahnasawy, 19, sent the undercover agent an image of Times Square with a smartphone message saying, “We seriously need to car bomb times square.” In another, he expressed a desire to “shoot up concerts.”

The agent and El Bahnasawy also were in communication with the 19-year-old Haroon, who wanted to join El Bahnasawy in New York City for the attacks, authorities said. Haroon told the agent the subway was a “perfect” place to shoot passengers, court papers said.

Salic, 37, was accused of sending money to help fund the attacks.

El Bahnasawy pleaded guilty in October 2016. Haroon and Salic were awaiting extradition overseas.

All three are facing the possibility of life in prison.