Alert Gun Store Clerk Helps Nab Nasser Abdo

[subdjoe]

Note to the mods - I wasn't sure if this news item should go in Important News or Politics.  Since it is news, and somewhat gun related, I decided to go with News.  If I'm mistaken, can you please move it to the Political sub-forum?


I won't call him a jihadist but...

KILLEEN — A soldier AWOL from Fort Campbell, Ky., was accused Thursday of plotting a terrorist attack against soldiers at Fort Hood after authorities reported finding weapons, jihadist materials and enough gunpowder to make 10,000 rounds of handgun ammunition in his motel room.

Pfc. Nasser Jason Abdo, 21, of Garland was taken into custody after a clerk at a local gun store told Killeen police about a suspicious man who bought 6 pounds of smokeless gunpowder, three boxes of 12-gauge shotgun shells and a spare magazine for a .40-caliber semi-automatic handgun.

He was in Killeen’s city jail pending arraignment on federal charges.

Killeen’s police chief, Dennis Baldwin, said authorities think Abdo, a Muslim conscientious objector charged by the military with possession of child pornography before his arrival here, targeted troops in a possible attack, though Baldwin declined to specify where.

The motive wasn’t clear, but Baldwin described the incident as a “terror plot” that might have taken place were it not for the tip and a swift arrest at the discount motel less than a mile from Fort Hood ‘s East Gate.

“I can tell you that we would probably be here today giving a different briefing had he not been stopped,” Baldwin said.

The arrest raised the specter of another shooting spree on Fort Hood, where 45 people were gunned down Nov. 5, 2009. Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, charged with 13 counts of capital murder and 32 counts of attempted murder in the rampage, is awaiting trial.

Police said Abdo bought the gunpowder and ammo at Guns Galore, the same shop where Hasan bought a handgun before the 2009 attack.

FBI spokesman Erik Vasys said authorities found “items that could be identified as bomb-making components, including gunpowder,” at the motel after Thursday’s arrest.

U.S. Rep. John Carter, who represents the Killeen area, said investigators learned Abdo had bought uniforms with Fort Hood unit patches from a military surplus store.

Two law enforcement officials told CNN that jihadi literature was found in a backpack belonging to Abdo, who said he wanted to attack soldiers at Fort Hood.

The network also said authorities found Christmas lights and battery-operated clocks apparently intended to create a timing and triggering device. Sugar, shrapnel, a pressure cooker and shotgun shells that were in the process of being dismantled for raw explosives were also found.

The materials were enough to make two bombs, a Pentagon official told CNN.

Baldwin, speaking outside police headquarters, called Abdo “a very dangerous individual” and said he was alone in a cell.

Baldwin told reporters he was unaware of any other threats to the community, and said early reports that three soldiers were involved were incorrect. He said an incident involving two other soldiers was unrelated.

“As far as I know, he did act alone,” Baldwin said.

Abdo, who entered the service in March 2009 and became an infantryman, later was approved for discharge as a conscientious objector because of his Muslim beliefs. That was put on hold, however, after he was accused of having child pornography on his government computer.

After a hearing last month, a court-martial was ordered, the Pentagon reported. On July 4, Abdo’s status was changed to absent without leave.

Carter, R-Round Rock, said Abdo admitted during police questioning that he had been planning an attack on Fort Hood.

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

“Reports of the arsenal that he purchased at the same gun store as Maj. Hasan indicates this plot could have been significant,” said U.S. Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Austin and a member of the House Homeland Security Committee. “Our nation owes a debt of gratitude to the gun dealer who sensed something was wrong and alerted authorities.”

A veteran soldier and police officer, retired Army 1st Sgt. Greg Ebert called a Killeen police lieutenant he once worked with after a man entered Guns Galore and bought smokeless gunpowder and then asked what it was.

“I’m a retired police officer. I spent my entire adult life observing other human beings — good, bad and otherwise. When that little voice starts talking to me, I pay attention,” said Ebert, a part-time clerk at the store.

The man, who “just seemed to be an odd sort of person,” said Ebert, arrived at the store in a cab Tuesday about 1 p.m. and appeared to be in a hurry. He paid $250 cash for the gunpowder and ammunition.

He didn’t ask for the change, and he left his receipt on the counter.

Ebert gave the receipt and a surveillance video to police after the man left, and told them he had left in a taxi painted robin’s-egg blue.

The company is new and the cars “stand out like a sore thumb, so I pretty much recognized who it was, which allowed the Police Department to track backwards though the taxi company to find out where he was at.”

Baldwin, the police chief, said Abdo “was taken down rather quickly, without incident.”

Ebert said he sold the gunpowder and weapons despite his suspicions because “it was odd that he didn’t have a better understanding of gunpowder, but that by itself doesn’t mean he’s up to no good.

“I’m an employee, I mean, it’s a business. It’s not in a position to say, ‘No, I’m not going to sell you nothing’ unless there is something physically present that says don’t sell this. But it didn’t stop me from questioning what this guy was doing and forwarding that information to the police,” he added.

“It’s like everybody wants to bring up Hasan. Nidal Hasan walks in here in a military uniform with major insignia on his shoulders, and you look at this guy. He’s passive, well-mannered, well-spoken. How were we to know that within two months he would be out here at Fort Hood killing people? So it’s the same thing with this guy.”

Now, we can't rush to conclusions about this guy.  Not all the facts are in.

Oh, and by the way:

[BUGEYE]

Joe, we can go ahead and make conclusions.  he confessed that he was going to bomb fort hood.
why do americans choose to live looking over their shoulder for the next muslim killer?
why don't we kill them?

[powderman]

News said he wanted to bomb 2 restaurants where our soldiers take their families. He also bragged on hasan. Kill him, he is of no use to society. Again I say, no such critter as an AMERICAN muslim, their cult of hatred and death comes first, no reason for them to be here. Tip of the iceberg, they live among us. POWDERMAN. 

[BBF]

LOL ! Tongue in cheek, that amount of stuff he bought at that  store would seem reasonable for someone in Texas.........................me bad

[subdjoe]

LOL ! Tongue in cheek, that amount of stuff he bought at that  store would seem reasonable to for someone in Texas.........................me bad

Cripes...only 6 pounds of powder and a few boxes of shotgun shells....that is reasonable even in CA.

Hell, I get powder by the case.  At one point a few years ago I had, briefly, close to 150 pounds of Goex Fg in my bunker (per federal and state regs gotta have a purpose built bunker for it....odd thing is, if I roll it in cartridges for the cannon, then I DON'T need to store it that way, go figure).

[BUGEYE]

Joe, have the anti-gunners been looking at you cannon guys yet?
you don't smoke in your bunker do you?

[Graybeard]

Surely there is more to this story than the article tells us. I can see nothing odd about buying six pounds of powder and some shotgun shells and that hardly constitues an ARSENAL as the article called it.

That he left his receipt is of no consequence that I can see heck most stores around here that sell guns and ammo don't even give them. Since they didn't say how much change he was due I'm not sure if that is or isn't significant. Heck I've been forgetful enough to start to walk away without mine and be called back by the clerk to give it to me.

BTW gun powder unless it's Black Powder is not an explosive anyway and isn't rated as such by the feds.

[subdjoe]

Surely there is more to this story than the article tells us. I can see nothing odd about buying six pounds of powder and some shotgun shells and that hardly constitues an ARSENAL as the article called it.

That he left his receipt is of no consequence that I can see heck most stores around here that sell guns and ammo don't even give them. Since they didn't say how much change he was due I'm not sure if that is or isn't significant. Heck I've been forgetful enough to start to walk away without mine and be called back by the clerk to give it to me.

BTW gun powder unless it's Black Powder is not an explosive anyway and isn't rated as such by the feds.

Mr. Admin, sir    from the piece I posted:
The clerk

A veteran soldier and police officer, retired Army 1st Sgt. Greg Ebert called a Killeen police lieutenant he once worked with after a man entered Guns Galore and bought smokeless gunpowder and then asked what it was.

“I’m a retired police officer. I spent my entire adult life observing other human beings — good, bad and otherwise. When that little voice starts talking to me, I pay attention,” said Ebert, a part-time clerk at the store.

The man, who “just seemed to be an odd sort of person,” said Ebert, arrived at the store in a cab Tuesday about 1 p.m. and appeared to be in a hurry. He paid $250 cash for the gunpowder and ammunition.

He didn’t ask for the change, and he left his receipt on the counter.

.......................

Ebert said he sold the gunpowder and weapons despite his suspicions because “it was odd that he didn’t have a better understanding of gunpowder, but that by itself doesn’t mean he’s up to no good.

“I’m an employee, I mean, it’s a business. It’s not in a position to say, ‘No, I’m not going to sell you nothing’ unless there is something physically present that says don’t sell this. But it didn’t stop me from questioning what this guy was doing and forwarding that information to the police,” he added.

Basically he thought the guy kind of hinky, had no call not to sell the product, but called the cops as a just in case. I would bet that the guy just asked for some gun powder, didn't know what type he wanted, gave weird answers about what he was reloading and just in general set off warning bells in the clerks head.

Modern powder will, if confined, cause what most people would call an explosion.  Sometimes it doesn't take much confinement. I once had about a quarter pound of powder that I had contaminated - dumped some of a different powder into it by mistake.  I dumped it into a small drum (about 30 gallon) and tossed in a match.  It didn't go "BOOM" but got a "WHUMP" out of it, not the slow burn I had expected.

[subdjoe]

Joe, have the anti-gunners been looking at you cannon guys yet?
you don't smoke in your bunker do you?

Not yet, although some states do have some restrictions on them.  I use "bunker" because that is what CA and ATF call it.  Basically a moderately sturdy box away from other structures made to control and direct an unintended explosion. 

As I said, it is odd. If I have the powder wrapped in foil, then it is a ready to use cartridge and doesn't need special storage.  But in the cans and boxes it is shipped in, it needs special storage.  Go figure.  The only real change recently is that you can't get more than 50 pounds shipped in one lot, thanks to Homeland Security.  If the club get 100 pounds, it has to ship in two lots.  And without a placard and special paperwork I can't transport 100 pounds or more.  A few years ago I drove from near San Francisco to Gettysburg with about 92 pounds of it.   Somewhere in Nebraska, just to keep my mind occupied, I started thinking.  There would be about a hundred cannon there, and my guess is that they would all have about that much powder.  Then add in about 15,000 cav and infantry, each with a few pounds.  I figured we had a total of about 50,000 pounds of powder there.

[powderman]

BTW gun powder unless it's Black Powder is not an explosive anyway and isn't rated as such by the feds.
 
 
It will flare up quickly but does not go BOOM. Last fall a guy in Lou was arrested for making a bomb. He basicly made a big firecracker using a pipe. No terrorist, no malice, he just wanted to experiment. He took it out of town to a rr track to set it off. All it did was fizzle. Somebody saw him and turned him in. He was charged with bomb making and terrorist activities, not sure if he's still in jail or not. News showed his big stash of bomb making material. Right in the middle was a big can of red dot shotgun pwdr, his deadly bomb might have been 6 in long.  The media ate it up. All the police knew was that it said gunpowder. I felt sorry for the guy. POWDERMAN. 

[BBF]

You've got to wonder how many explosive experts they called in on that trial.