Thaindian News

Islamabad/Washington, May 22 (ANI): An army officer and a businessman have been detained in connection with the foiled Times Square bombing, as part of a widening inquiry into a circle of Pakistanis who had some knowledge of the activities of key suspect Faisal Shahzad.

The New York Times quoted a Western official and an American intelligence official, as saying that the army officer was arrested in Rawalpindi, the garrison city that serves as the headquarters of the Pakistani Army.

He appeared to have been disaffected, and his involvement with Faisal Shahzad, the Pakistani-American charged with the failed bombing in New York, did not signal the involvement of the Pakistani Army in the attack, the intelligence official said.

The arrest of the officer, who holds the rank of major and whose name was not disclosed, and of Salman Ashraf Khan, 35, an executive of a catering company that organized functions for the American Embassy here, suggests the participation of a group of Pakistanis in helping Shahzad after he returned to Pakistan from the United States last year to plan the bombing, the officials said.

Several other Pakistani men have been arrested in the Islamabad area in connection with the case, according to a Pakistani intelligence official.

A senior Pakistani official said Friday that Khan and the army major were among several Pakistanis being questioned in connection with the Times Square case.

Investigators were still sorting out exactly what role, if any, each individual played in helping Shahzad develop and plan the attack, the official said. (ANI)