Air passenger found with chemicals and syringe

A Somali national tried to board a commercial airliner in Mogadishu last month with powdered chemicals, liquid and a syringe that together could have caused an explosion, officials said today.

A Somali national tried to board a commercial airliner in Mogadishu last month with powdered chemicals, liquid and a syringe that together could have caused an explosion, officials said today.

The hallmarks bear chilling similarities to the terrorist plot to blow up a Detroit-bound airliner.

Police spokesman Abdulahi Hassan Barise said the suspect was arrested before the November 13 Daallo Airlines flight departed. It was scheduled to travel from Mogadishu to the northern Somali city of Hargeisa, then to Djibouti and Dubai.

Two international officials in Nairobi said the incident is similar to the Detroit attack in that the Somali man had a syringe, a bag of powdered chemicals and liquid.

US officials are aware of the incident and hastening to investigate any possible links with the Detroit attack.

The Somali man – whose name has not yet been released – was arrested by African Union peacekeeping troops.

Barise, said the suspect is still in Somali custody.

“We don’t know whether he’s linked with al-Qaida or other foreign organisations, but his actions were the acts of a terrorist. We caught him red-handed,” he said.

A Nairobi-based diplomat said the incident in Somalia is similar to the attempted attack on the Detroit-bound airliner on Christmas Day in that the Somali man had a syringe, a bag of powdered chemicals and liquid – tools similar to those used in the Detroit attack.

Barigye Bahoku, the spokesman for the African Union military force in Mogadishu, said the chemicals from the Somali suspect could have caused an explosion that would have caused air decompression inside the plane. However, Bahoku said he doesn’t believe an explosion would have brought the plane down.

A second international official familiar with the incident, also speaking on condition of anonymity because he isn’t authorised to discuss the case, confirmed that the substances carried by the Somali passenger could have been used as an explosive device.

In the Detroit case, alleged attacker Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab hid explosive PETN in a condom or condom-like bag just below his torso when he travelled from Amsterdam to Detroit. Like the captured Somali, Abdulmutallab also had a syringe filled with liquid. The substances seized from the Somali passenger are being tested.

The November incident garnered little attention before the December 25 attack aboard a flight on final approach to Detroit. US officials have now learned of the Somali case and are hastening to investigate any possible links between it and the Detroit attack, though no officials would speak on the record about the probe.

US investigators said Abdulmutallab told them he received training and instructions from al Qaida operatives in Yemen – which lies across the Gulf of Aden from Somalia. Similarly, large swathes of Somalia are controlled by an insurgent group, al-Shabab, which has ties to al Qaida.

Western officials say many of the hundreds of foreign jihadi fighters in Somalia come in small boats across the Gulf of Aden from Yemen. The officials also say examination of equipment used in some Somali suicide attacks leads them to believe it was originally assembled in Yemen.

Law enforcement officials believe the suspect in the Detroit incident tried to ignite a two-part concoction of the high explosive PETN and possibly a glycol-based liquid explosive, setting off popping, smoke and some fire but no deadly detonation. Abdulmutallab, a Nigerian national, is charged with trying to destroy an aircraft.

A Somali security official involved in the capture of the suspect in Mogadishu said he had a 1kg (2.2lb) package of chemical powder and a container of liquid chemicals. The security official said the suspect was the last passenger to try to board.

Once security officials detected the powder chemicals and syringe, the suspect tried to bribe the security team that detained him, the Somali security official said. The security official said the suspect had a white shampoo bottle with a black acid-like substance in it. He also had a clear plastic bag with a light green chalky substance and a syringe containing a green liquid. The security official spoke on condition of anonymity.

The powdered material had the strong scent of ammonia, Bahoku said, and samples have been sent to London for testing.

A spokeswoman for Daallo Airlines said company officials weren’t aware of the incident and would have to seek more information before commenting. Daallo Airlines is based in Dubai and has offices in Djibouti and France.

more courts articles

Gary Glitter victim seeking six-figure sum in damages, court told Gary Glitter victim seeking six-figure sum in damages, court told
Stephen Bear ordered to pay back profits from sharing private sex tape Stephen Bear ordered to pay back profits from sharing private sex tape
Man (25) in court charged with murdering his father and attempted murder of mother Man (25) in court charged with murdering his father and attempted murder of mother

More in this section

Stephen Bear court case Stephen Bear ordered to pay back profits from sharing private sex tape
Russia ‘abolishes’ monitoring of sanctions on North Korea with UN veto Russia ‘abolishes’ monitoring of sanctions on North Korea with UN veto
Russia arrests another suspect in concert hall attack that killed 143 Russia arrests another suspect in concert hall attack that killed 143
Cookie Policy Privacy Policy Brand Safety FAQ Help Contact Us Terms and Conditions

© Examiner Echo Group Limited