You are reading

Jackson Heights Man Who Plotted Attack on Times Square Pleads Guilty to Gun Charges

A 25-year-old Jackson Heights man pleaded guilty Friday to gun charges in relation to a plot to attack Times Square (Photo: Vidar Nordli-Mathisen)

Dec. 20, 2021 By Christian Murray

A Jackson Heights man who bought firearms with the intention of carrying out a mass shooting in Times Square pleaded guilty in federal court last week to gun-related charges.

Ashiqul Alam, 25, who is a citizen of Bangladesh, admitted Friday that he had purchased a firearm with an obliterated serial number as part of a plea agreement. As part of the agreement, he is likely to be sentenced to 5-years in prison and be deported upon completion of his sentence.

“With today’s guilty plea, Alam has admitted to purchasing a firearm for use in a full-scale, mass-casualty attack in Times Square,” said U.S. Attorney Breon Peace in a statement.  “Protecting our national security and the residents of this city, state and nation from the threat of terrorist attacks at home or abroad continues to be one of the highest priorities of this Office and its law enforcement partners.”

According to court records, Alam expressed a desire between August 2018 and June 2019 to purchase firearms for use in a mass-casualty attack. He identified two locations—Times Square and Washington D.C.

Alam, according to court documents, conducted several reconnaissance trips to Times Square in January 2019 and used his cell phone to make video recordings of the area as he searched for potential targets.

He also conducted research online about firearms and discussed purchasing a gun with an undercover cop. In March 2019 he told the cop that he was interested in buying a Glock 9 mm pistol.

In May 2019, the undercover cop told him that the firearm for sale had an obliterated serial number in which Alam replied “Oh, that’s good man.”

In June, Alam met the undercover cop and provided him with $400 toward the purchase of two Glock 19 semiautomatic pistols with obliterated serial numbers.  He asked whether the Glock 19 was compatible with a silencer. He was arrested soon after.

Alam was not charged with terrorism-related crimes. Officials said, despite his intentions, he posed no immediate threat, since law enforcement was monitoring his plans.

email the author: [email protected]
No comments yet

Leave a Comment
Reply to this Comment

All comments are subject to moderation before being posted.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Recent News

Long Island ‘predator’ indicted on sex trafficking charges for forcing two victims into prostitution using violence, tattoos to intimidate them: DA

Mar. 29, 2023 By Bill Parry

A Long Island man was indicted on sex trafficking charges and faces up to 50 years in prison for allegedly forcing two women to engage in prostitution and assaulting and robbing them while weaponizing personalized tattoos as a twisted form of branding his victims, Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced on March 29.

Met Council leader warns of ‘catastrophe’ for low-income families in Queens due to lack of pandemic-era federal food aid

Mar. 28, 2023 By Bill Parry

As an accomplished legislator, law professor and media personality with broad experience in government and not-for-profit organizations, Met Council CEO and executive director David Greenfield is well aware of the power of words. With Passover arriving on Wednesday, April 5, and with federal pandemic food assistance no longer available to low-income families in Queens, the leader of the nation’s largest Jewish charity organization warned of a coming “catastrophe” and called for the city to step up to provide $13 million in emergency funding for pantries to help New Yorkers facing food insecurity and elevated costs of living in the borough.