Seven people were arrested in connection with the early stages of a plot to attack the tallest US skyscraper -- Chicago's Sears Tower -- and other buildings in the US, including the FBI office in Miami, a federal law enforcement official said.
As part of the raids tied to the arrests on Thursday, FBI agents swarmed a warehouse in Miami's Liberty City area, using a blowtorch to take off a metal door. One neighbor said the suspects had been sleeping in the warehouse while running what seemed to be a "military boot camp."
The official told reporters the alleged plotters were mainly Americans with no apparent ties to al-Qaeda or other foreign terrorist organizations. He spoke on condition of anonymity so as not to pre-empt news conferences planned for yesterday in Washington and Miami.
Miami US Attorney R. Alexander Acosta said in a statement that more details about the probe would be released yesterday.
"There is no imminent threat to Miami or any other area because of these operations," said Richard Kolko, spokesman for FBI headquarters in Washington. He declined further comment.
FBI Director Robert Mueller, questioned about the case during an appearance on CNN's Larry King Live, said he couldn't offer many details because "it's an ongoing operation."
"We are conducting a number of arrests and searches" in Miami, Mueller said, which were expected to be wrapped up yesterday morning.
Managers of the Sears Tower, the nation's tallest building, said in a statement that they speak regularly with the FBI and local law enforcement about terror threats and that Thursday "was no exception."
"Law enforcement continues to tell us that they have never found evidence of a credible terrorism threat against Sears Tower that has gone beyond criminal discussions," the statement said.
RSS