He was a wealthy, successful doctor, a husband, and a father. To his neighbors, he was just a regular guy. But in May of 2010, a bomb packed with explosives was left in a car in the middle of Times Square, and the FBI’s hunt for the man responsible would lead them to a quiet suburb and a life built on secrets. Faisal Shahzad was born in 1979 in Pakistan.
His father was a high-ranking Air Force officer, which gave the family a life of privilege. He went to an elite high school and later moved to the United States on a student visa, studying computer information systems at the University of Bridgeport in Connecticut. To his classmates, he seemed like a normal guy. He had a nice car, was a great cook, and could party with the best of them.
But as the US became involved in conflicts after 9/11, friends noticed a darker side to his commentary, with remarks that suggested he felt America had it coming. He earned his MBA, entered into an arranged marriage, and with his wife’s help, became a US citizen. They settled into a life in Connecticut, but it wasn’t as normal as it appeared. Neighbors noticed him coming and going at odd hours, and he took frequent trips overseas, making over a dozen visits to Pakistan between 2003 and 2010.
Authorities would later believe these trips were for terrorist training. As his trips to Pakistan grew longer, he began to prepare for something big. He purchased powerful fireworks from a store in Pennsylvania to be used as detonators. He bought a burner phone, paying with cash so he couldn’t be traced.
He used that phone to buy a 1993 Nissan Pathfinder. On May 1st, 2010, Shahzad drove the SUV into the heart of New York City. He parked it in Times Square, just below the Lion King marquee on West 45th Street. He left the engine running and the hazard lights on.
Soon, street vendors noticed smoke coming from the back of the vehicle and heard strange sounds. They immediately alerted police, who barricaded the area and began evacuating buildings. A bomb squad rushed in. The vehicle contained propane canisters, gasoline, and a large amount of fertilizer.
It was a potentially devastating car bomb, but the explosives failed to detonate properly. The bomb had been improperly constructed. Investigators were able to trace the vehicle’s ID number to the registered owner, who said his daughter had sold the car. They went through her emails and found a phone number for the buyer, which led them to a photograph of Shahzad.
His name was added to the no-fly list, but they were racing against the clock. Shahzad was already at John F. Kennedy International Airport. He made the classic mistake of showing up right before departure and paying cash for his ticket, which triggered multiple alarms.
Emirates Airlines notified the US government of his reservation. Just after 11:00 p. m. , Shahzad took his seat on the plane.
The doors were shut for takeoff, but the flight sat on the tarmac for almost an hour. Shahzad’s moment of freedom was about to end. Agents and police stopped the aircraft, opened the doors, and arrested him just before it was scheduled to push back. From the time he parked the SUV to the moment of his arrest, exactly 53 hours and 17 minutes had passed.
Shahzad was charged on five terrorism-related crimes. To the surprise of many, he pleaded guilty. But he didn’t go down quietly. He sparred with the judge, rambling about a war between Muslims and the United States government, all with a grin on his face.
He was sentenced to life in prison. Experts believed his playboy lifestyle had been just a cover, that he had come to America with a mission in mind from the start and had played the role of a normal citizen to achieve it. This attack was stopped at the last second, and it was a close call that could have been a lethal terrorist attack.
