FBI tactics in investigating a Somali-American accused of plotting to blow up a US Christmas tree lighting ceremony took centre stage on Monday, as undercover agents began testifying.
Giving evidence in disguise and visible only to jurors, one agent maintained that Mohamed Mohamud was prone to violence from the beginning and spoke of plans to “wage war” on the United States.
To test Mohamud’s resolve, the agent – who was posing as an al-Qaeda recruiter named “Youssef” – said that in his first meeting with Mohamud, he gave the then-teenager five examples of how he could be “a good Muslim”.
According to Youssef – whose real name was withheld in court - Mohamud stopped short of the most extreme option, martyrdom, but chose violence over praying five times a day or raising money for extremists.
“He said he would like to become operational,” Youssef testified.
Mohamud, now 21, faces life in prison for allegedly attempting to detonate a weapon of mass destruction – a harmless fake supplied by FBI agents -- near the crowded 2010 pre-Christmas ceremony in Portland, Oregon.