SAN FRANCISCO: Federal agents are probing the background of a former US Marine for allegedly plotting a Christmas attack in San Francisco inspired by the militant Islamic State (IS) group, according to court documents.

Tow-truck driver Everitt Aaron Jameson, 26, was planning to target the city’s busy Pier 39 tourist spot, according to an affidavit submitted Friday by FBI Special Agent Christopher McKinney.

The suspect is said to have outlined to undercover agents a plan to use explosives to target crowds at the pier — which is lined with restaurants, shops and bars — between Dec 18 and 25 because “Christmas was the perfect day to commit the attack.” Jameson professed not to need an escape plan as he was “ready to die,” the document said. As a former soldier, he said, “I have been trained in combat and things of war.”

The FBI said the public was “never in imminent danger.” Yet McKinney acknowledged an FBI misstep that could have endangered the investigation.

He said that on Monday, an FBI employee using a telephone number with a Washington DC area code had mistakenly called Jameson’s cell phone. When Jameson answered, apparently in Arabic, the employee immediately hung up.

When Jameson called back, he got a voicemail message giving the employee’s name but not identifying the agency.

That evening, Jameson told his undercover contact, “I don’t think I can do this after all. I’ve reconsidered.”

FBI agents raided the suspect’s home in Modesto, California two days later, allegedly finding his last will and testament along with a .22-caliber Winchester rifle, handguns, fireworks and ammunition.

Jameson attended basic training with the Marine Corps in 2009, obtaining a “sharpshooter” rifle qualification, the FBI said, but was discharged after failing to disclose a history of asthma.

According to McKinney, Jameson selected Pier 39 because he “knew it was a heavily crowded area.”

“Jameson explained that he also desired to use explosives” in an attack that could involve his tow truck as an additional weapon, McKinney stated.

The suspect revealed his plans to an undercover FBI agent he believed to be a senior leader of IS, according to the court document.

Jameson said the US needed “another attack like New York or San Bernardino,” involving vehicles and firearms.

He had voiced support for the Oct 31 attack in New York in which a jihadist drove a pickup truck into a crowded bike path, killing eight. He allegedly had messaged “I’m glad to know we Muslims are finally hitting back,” the FBI said.

In the 2015 attack in San Bernardino, California, a married couple used firearms to kill 14 people at a government building.

According to the 11-page criminal complaint, Jameson “has espoused radical jihadi beliefs.” He had “liked” pro-IS posts on Facebook, including an image of Santa Claus standing in New York with explosives.

Published in Dawn, December 24th, 2017