FORT HOOD (July 28, 2011)—A tip from a Killeen gun dealer led to the arrest of an AWOL Muslim soldier who had firearms and bomb-making components in his hotel room and planned an attack on Fort Hood personnel, authorities confirmed Thursday.

Killeen police arrested Army Pvt. Naser Jason Abdo, 21, who was AWOL from Fort Campbell, Ky., Wednesday at America's Best Value Inn on South Fort Hood Street in Killeen on an outstanding child pornography warrant.

The arrest came after an investigation that started with a tip from a local gun shop on Tuesday.

Abdo was assigned to the 101st Airborne Division’s Company E, 1st Brigade Combat Team (Rear Provisional) at the time of his arrest.

U.S. Rep. John Carter. R-Round Rock, who’s been briefed on the arrest, told News 10 Thursday afternoon that the soldier planned to detonate two bombs at an unnamed restaurant near the post that Fort Hood personnel frequent and then planned to open fire on the diners.

“He was planning on going into a restaurant someplace that was heavily traveled by soldiers, set off the two bombs then come back in and finish everybody off with his gun,” Carter said.

Carter said Abdo had broken into an adjoining hotel room and was in the process of "cooking" the bombs at the time of his arrest.

During a news conference Thursday afternoon, Killeen Police Chief Dennis Baldwin confirmed that “military personnel were the target of this suspect,” but declined to provide further details.

Abdo was held in an isolation cell in the Killeen City Jail Thursday afternoon.

FBI spokesman Erik Vasys said Thursday that firearms and "items that could be identified as bomb-making components, including gunpowder" were removed from his hotel room.

CNN reported that authorities also recovered pressure cookers, 18 pounds of sugar that could have been used to enhance an explosive, Christmas lights that could have been used as a timer for a bomb, and Jihadist literature.

Sources told CNN enough material was recovered to have made two bombs.

An alert issued by the Army said Abdo admitted he planned an attack on Fort Hood.

The Associated Press obtained the e-mail alert that was sent to all Army units Thursday.

It said Abdo had a large quantity of ammunition, weapons and a bomb inside a backpack.

It said he admitted under questioning that he planned an attack on Fort Hood.

Unconfirmed reports suggested that two other soldiers have also been arrested, but Baldwin said Thursday, "As far as we know, he did act alone."

Authorities at Fort Campbell interrogated two of Abdo’s friends, Carter said, but there was no evidence either was involved.

“Thanks to quick action by a Texas gun dealer in alerting local police to a suspicious character and vigorous response by the Killeen Police Department, we may well have averted a repeat of the tragic 2009 radical Islamic attack on our nation’s largest military installation,” Carter said.

Carter’s office said it received information that Guns Galore in Killeen, which is the same store at which accused Fort Hood gunman Maj. Nidal Hasan purchased weapons used in the November 2009 attack at the post’s Soldier Readiness Center, called Killeen police to report that a man had purchased gunpowder, shotgun ammunition and a magazine for a semi-automatic handgun.

Carter’s office said the man also purchased uniforms with Fort Hood unit patches from a local surplus store.

“On questioning, the suspect reportedly admitted planning an attack on Fort Hood,” Carter said.

Abdo, who’s from Garland, joined the Army in March 2009.

He went AWOL on July 4, on the eve of his first deployment to Afghanistan.

Greg Ebert of the gun shop Guns Galore said the man authorities identified as Abdo asked about smokeless gunpowder, what it could be used for and how it worked Tuesday.

Ebert said the man purchased six 1-pound canisters of the smokeless powder, three boxes of .12 gauge shotgun shells and a handgun magazine.

He paid in cash and left in a hurry, leaving his change behind. Ebert said.

Ebert, who retired from the Killeen Police Department last year after 17 years on the force, said the purchase came to about $250.

Police reviewed surveillance video from the store, which showed the man arrived and departed in a cab.

Fort Hood Thursday acknowledged the arrest, but referred questions to the Killeen Police Department.

“At this time, there has been no incident at Fort Hood,” the statement said.

“We continue our diligence in keeping our force protection at appropriate levels,” the post said.

U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, praised authorities for their handling of the situation.

“Yesterday’s incident is yet another reminder that we must stay vigilant against those who wish to attack innocent Americans,” he said.

Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas, praised residents and police for their vigilance.

“His arrest is a perfect example of how alert citizens and dedicated law enforcement personnel can work together to prevent a potential terrorist attack in our own backyard,” she said.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry called the arrest “a sobering reminder of the importance of remaining vigilant in the ongoing efforts to protect our communities from those that would do us harm.”

“Quick and diligent efforts like these save lives, and we are reminded to be thankful for our peace officers, and their continued dedication to keeping our communities and families safe,” Perry said.

“This incident also underscores the importance of citizens reporting something that doesn’t seem quite right immediately to law enforcement,” he said.

Abdo was the subject of an Al-Jazeera report in August 2010 in which he told an interviewer he didn’t think he could “take part in any way in the killing of a Muslim.

According to the website CouragetoResist.com, Abdo sought conscientious objector status in June 2010.

An article on the website says Abdo “experienced a great deal of harassment and discrimination” because of his beliefs.

"Early in basic training… one soldier repeatedly insulted me and Islam saying, 'Go pray to your god that doesn't exist or your pedophile prophet,'” the article quoted Abdo as saying.

“The climax of this harassment occurred when my comrades all made a concerted effort to get me an unwanted discharge because I was not welcome in their ranks,” Abdo said.

Army spokesman Troy Roland said Thursday the application for conscientious objector status was approved and that Abdo was about to be discharged when the child pornography allegations surfaced.

After a hearing on June 15, Roland said, an investigating officer recommended that Abdo be referred for court-martial.

Abdo has said he thought he was charged with a crime because he sought to leave the Army as a conscientious objector.

A website was created to raise funds for his defense, but it appeared to have been taken down Thursday morning.

Free Nasser Abdo Website

Read The Article

James Branum, the lawyer who represents Abdo in both his conscientious objector application and the child pornography case, posted a statement on his Facebook page Thursday.

“I represented him on two prior cases (his C.O. claim and the charges against him for possession of child pornography, but I am not representing him on the new charges that are being reported in the press and have no comments to make to the press about these new charges,” he said.

In November 2009, Fort Hood was the scene of the worst mass shooting on a U.S. military installation in history.

Army psychiatrist Maj. Nidal Hasan is charged with 13 counts of premeditated murder and 32 counts of attempted premeditated murder in the deadly Nov. 5, 2009 rampage.

He’s scheduled to stand trial next March and will face the death penalty.

He remains in custody in the Bell County Jail.

He was left paralyzed in an exchange of gunfire with two Fort Hood police officers.

Abdo sought conscientious objector status in June 2010.

Sounds like they might want to consider having personnel carry sidearms at all times on and off post...

How is this any different?

Da Boss wrote:Don't we have guys like that too though? Guys that infiltrate enemy organisations and bring them down? I'm pretty damn sure we do.

Not saying that terrorists are the same as soldiers- they are not. But just saying that any argument can cut both ways.

unless the base commanders orders run contrary to that

War is an awful thing, and I don't think anyone else in the thread is going to agree that it's "fine" that weddings, funerals, or hospitals have been bombed. Generally these are seen as terrible things, to be avoided if possible in the future.

Emperors Faithful wrote:

War is an awful thing, and I don't think anyone else in the thread is going to agree that it's "fine" that weddings, funerals, or hospitals have been bombed. Generally these are seen as terrible things, to be avoided if possible in the future.

That's very naive coming from you, Mannahnin.

Of course the general public think both terrorist attacks and civilian bombing are terrible things. The people actually involved and fighting however may not have any such qualms.