A man described by the FBI as an Islamic State sympathizer has been charged with plotting to detonate a backpack bomb on a Florida beach.
A criminal complaint unsealed Tuesday charges 23-year-old Harlem Suarez of Key West with attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction in the U.S. Authorities say Suarez came to the FBI’s attention through his online posts praising the Islamic State group and containing extremist rhetoric.
Suarez made his first court appearance Tuesday in Miami. It wasn’t immediately clear if he had a lawyer.
The complaint says Suarez told an FBI informant he wanted to make a timer bomb, bury it on a Key West beach and detonate it. Suarez was arrested Monday after taking possession of an inert explosive device provided by an FBI informant.
