Ahmad Khan Rahami allegedly conducted dry run of bombings, bought equipment online

Police officers in New Jersey following a shootout with Ahmad Khan Rahami.

(Image credit: Jewel Samad/AFP/Getty Images)

last updated 21 September 2016

On Tuesday, U.S. prosecutors charged Ahmad Khan Rahami, the 28-year-old New Jersey man suspected of being behind bombings in New York and New Jersey on Saturday, with four counts, including use of weapons of mass destruction and bombing a place of public use.

The criminal complaint says Rahami conducted a dry run of the bombings and was inspired by al Qaeda leaders Osama bin Laden and Anwar al-Awlaki, writing in a journal that he wanted to "kill" unbelievers, The New York Times reports. The notebook, found on Rahami after he was captured Monday, also reportedly included entries referencing jihad, pipe bombs, pressure cookers, and shooting police officers. The complaint says Rahami purchased equipment for the bombings from eBay, and filmed himself igniting an explosive device in the backyard of his home.

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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

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