KANSAS – A man was charged with trying to detonate a vehicle bomb at Fort Riley, a military base near Manhattan, Kansas, federal officials announced Friday.
John T. Booker Jr., 20, of Topeka, Kansas, repeatedly said he desired to engage in violent jihad on behalf of ISIL. He stated that he wanted to become a “martyr” by detonating the explosives.
The criminal complaint alleges Booker told another person “that detonating a suicide bomb is his number one aspiration because he couldn’t be captured, all evidence would be destroyed, and he would be guaranteed to hit his target,” according to authorities.
Booker identified Fort Riley as a good target, “because the post is famous and there are a lot of soldiers stationed there,” the complaint alleges.
“I want to assure the public there was never any breach of Fort Riley Military Base, nor was the safety or the security of the base or its personnel ever at risk,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Eric K. Jackson. “Recently the Command Staff at Fort Riley has been working hand in hand with law enforcement to ensure the utmost security and protection for the men and women who serve our country, and the surrounding community that supports the base.”
Booker was arrested this morning near Manhattan, as he completed his final preparations to detonate a vehicle bomb targeting U.S. military personnel.
He is facing one count of attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction – explosives, one count of attempting to damage property by means of an explosive and one count of attempting to provide material support to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant or ISIL, a designated foreign terrorist organization, officials said.
Officials allege that since March 2015, Booker plotted to construct an explosive device for an attack on American soil.
It is alleged he repeatedly stated that he desired to engage in violent jihad on behalf of ISIL. Over a period of months, he took a series of actions to advance his plot.
As alleged in the complaint, Booker helped in acquiring components for a vehicle bomb, produced a propaganda video, rented a storage locker to store components for the explosive device, identified Fort Riley as the target and talked about his commitment to trigger the device himself and become a martyr.
He is presumed innocent until proven guilty.