Faisal Shahzad Got Past Federal Officials Trailing Him: Arrest Was Planned At Terror Suspect's Home

Faisal Shahzad Got Past Federal Officials Trailing Him: Arrest Was Planned At Terror Suspect's Home

NEW YORK (AP / Huffington Post)-- Two people familiar with the Times Square bomb probe say federal officials lost track of suspect Faisal Shahzad (FY'-sul shah-ZAHD') on the day they meant to arrest him.

The people tell The Associated Press Shahzad slipped surveillance and made his way to Kennedy Airport Monday, spooked by news reports that investigators were seeking a Pakistani suspect in Connecticut.

The people spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to speak publicly about the breach in surveillance.

They say authorities had planned to arrest Shahzad, who had been under constant watch since 3 p.m., at his Connecticut home that evening.

But he somehow lost investigators trailing him, went to the airport making reservations along the way, and boarded a plane to Dubai. Authorities arrested him after his name was spotted on a no-fly list.

The Emirates flight, bound for Dubai, returned to the gate at John F. Kennedy International Airport, and law enforcement officials arrested the suspect, Faisal Shahzad.

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