Foreign Office (FO) spokesperson Tahir Andrabi said on Thursday that a man arrested by the US police last week in Delaware after he was found in possession of a handgun, ammunition and written plans for an attack was not of Pakistani origin and was an Afghan.

“He is not [a] Pakistani national or [of] Pakistan origin. He is an Afghan, spent a few years as a refugee [in Pakistan] and then went to the US, where he spent most of his life,” Andrabi said in a statement shared with journalists.

His clarification came after several media reports, including those from Indian and American news outlets, identified the suspect as a man of Pakistani origin.

A USA Today report said the arrested man, Luqman Khan, was a Pakistan-born US citizen, who was arrested on November 24.

Similarly, reports by the New York Post and India’s Hindustan Times and Times of India, among others, also identified him as a Pakistani immigrant.

According to a report by The Associated Press from earlier today, which also does not identify Khan as a man of Pakistani origin, the suspect was a student of the University of Delaware.

Meanwhile, a press release issued by the US Department of Justice on Dec 1 detailing charges against Khan identified him as a resident of Delaware’s Wilmington city and did not make any mention of his nationality.

It said that Khan was stopped by police at a traffic stop on November 24, and when he refused to comply, was arrested.

“During their investigation, officers discovered in Khan’s vehicle a .357 caliber Glock handgun loaded with 27 rounds,” it said. It added that officials also discovered a handwritten notebook, in which Khan discussed “additional weapons and firearms, how they could be used in an attack, and how law enforcement detection could be avoided once an attack was carried out”.

“The notebook referenced a member of the University of Delaware’s Police Department by name, and included a layout of a building with entry and exit points under which the words ‘UD Police Station’ were printed,” it said.

It added that later, law enforcement searched his residence and recovered “a Glock 19 9mm handgun equipped with an illegal machinegun conversion device, commonly called a ‘switch’”.

“Law enforcement also recovered a .556 rifle with a scope and a red dot sight, eleven more extended magazines, hollow point rounds of ammunition, and a two-plate tactical vest equipped with a single ballistic plate,” the department said.

According to the Department of Justice press release, Khan was charged with illegally possessing a machine gun on November 26.

“If convicted of the charge, Khan faces a maximum penalty of 10 years of imprisonment. If Khan is ultimately convicted, a federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the US Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors,” it said.