Bomb Plot Aimed At Catonsville Armed Forces Recruiting Center Thwarted

UPDATE (4:01 P.M.) Federal authorities charged Antonio Martinez, a recent convert to Islam, with attempted murder of federal employees and attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction in connection with an alleged plot to bomb a military recruiting center in Catonsville.

Martinez, 21, appeared in federal district court in Baltimore Wednesday.

During the brief hearing, Martinez, when asked what his name was, answered "My name is Muhammad Hussain."

Martinez sported a shaggy hair style and a small goatee and wore faded blue jeans, black sneakers and a white dress shirt that was buttoned to the neck.

When asked by Federal Magistrate Judge James Bredar if Antonio Martinez was his legal name, the defendant responded: "That is the other name that I was born with." 

Federal agents, in charging documents, allege that Martinez is a recent convert to Islam who unsuccessfully attempted to recruit other people to assist him in blowing up The Armed Forces Recruiting Center, located at 5439 Baltimore National Pike.

The recruiting center houses Army, Marines and Air Force recruiting offices. On Wednesday afternoon, the blinds were down and no one was seen coming in and out of the station. Television cameras and reporters arrived to the shopping center, which also includes a Forman Mills store, a beauty supply store and an auto parts store. 

In October, undercover federal agents recorded a series of conversations with Martinez, who used the name Muhammad Hussain. During those conversations, Martinez told the agents he wanted to kill military personnel and was trying to recruit at least three people to assist him including one Martinez said could obtain weapons, according to federal charging documents.

Martinez continued to meet with an undercover agent, according to federal court documents.

Martinez also made several posts to his Facebook page that caught the eye of investigators.

On Oct. 22, Martinez allegedly met with the undercover agent and said that "jihad is not only in Afghanistan or Pakistan but also in the United States," according to the charging documents.

Martinez also asked the agent to buy him a rifle, saying he was unable to purchase a gun for himself because of a prior criminal record, according to charging documents.

Martinez spoke of the possibility of using propane or gas tanks as a bomb and indicated that he wanted to blow up the recruiting center in Catonsville, according to the charging documents.

During another meeting on Oct. 29, Martinez told the agent that he knew someone who could help him get on the roof of the building where he would "go inside and wait for 'them' (the military recruiters) and then he would 'shoot everyone in the place,'" according to court records.

Martinez also allegedly told an agent "before I became Muslim, I was about to join the military…So I've been in there."

Charging documents state that Martinez wanted to burn the building down to "instill fear" and send a message that "whoever joins the military, they will be killed," according to court documents.

In November, Martinez said he had several propane tanks but did not know how to use them as explosives. 

On Dec. 2, Martinez told the undercover agent he believed the United States was responsible for the 9/11 bombings and used it as an excuse to declare war on Muslims.

The agent met Martinez Tuesday in a parking lot near the recruiting center to turn over a sport utility vehicle that contained an inert bomb, according to court records.

Martinez was arrested this morning after he allegedly drove the truck to the recruiting center and was seen attempting to arm the fake bomb.

In a late afternoon news conference, U.S. Attorney for Maryland Rod Rosenstein, told reporters that Martinez "initiated the specific idea of targeting t

his specific recruiting site" but said because of FBI involvement "there was never any actual danger to the public."

Rosenstein declined to provide a motive for the attempted bombing.

"I'm not going to opine on what was in (Martinez's) mind," Rosenstein said.

"Our concern is more about what he is going to do rather than why he is going to do it," Rosenstein said.

Following the hearing, Joseph Balter, a federal public defender appointed to represent Martinez, declined to discuss specifics of the case.

"It's very, very early in the case and we hope no one jumps to any conclusions abut the guilt of this client," Balter said.

Martinez is being held without bond and is scheduled to appear in federal court again on Monday at 1:30 p.m.