Fevered Hunt for Potential Plotters Continues on 9/11 Anniversary

Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- On the 10th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2011, terror attacks, the U.S. intelligence and law enforcement apparatus continued a feverish, around-the-clock effort to find evidence to corroborate an unfolding terror plot.

By late Saturday, none was in hand.  However, the picture authorities were working from had been fleshed out substantially since the intelligence from Afghanistan arrived Wednesday.

Authorities now believe, like several self-radicalized American jihadists before them, that the Sept. 11 anniversary plotters journey to jihad began in the U.S., took them to the Afghanistan-Pakistan region in July and had them, according to the CIA informant whose information is the hard bottom of the case, return to the U.S. on Aug. 31 or Sept. 1 to carry out an anniversary bomb plot.

So far, no new intelligence has come in to support or discount the informant's account coming in from overseas.  The process of elimination has been a grueling one for analysts and law officers working around the clock.

Since last Thursday, authorities have feverishly scrubbed communications and travel manifests using a series of computer search formulas to reduce the pool of possible candidates for investigation from several hundred names to a much narrower group, according to law enforcement and intelligence sources.

Now the FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF) has fanned out its resources -- which include those of numerous other agencies -- across the country to find, interview and eliminate people from the pool of potential suspects.

Here is how that process works according to authoritative sources who spoke to ABC News' Pierre Thomas:

The pool of names was culled from hundreds of men who flew into the U.S. from south Asia in August.  That list was developed by running names through all terror watchlists and intelligence files available to the U.S. government.

In sifting and narrowing the names, authorities also used a formula that included the ages of potential cell members -- the informant said they would be in their 30s or 40s -- date of travel, and multiple travel routes to and from the Afghan-Pakistan region.  From among that group, multiple authorities have told ABC News that two identities are of particular interest and appear possible members of the plot.

But whether the credible information that there is a plot is ultimately proven or disproved depends on whether an informant's information, gleaned secondhand from conversation in a house in Afghanistan, can be verified.

The specific travel time frame information comes from the same CIA informant who said three people were dispatched by al Qaeda to carry out a bomb plot in either New York or Washington.

Despite the secondhand nature of the source, the high quality of the information led authorities to deem the threat credible, if uncorroborated, and triggered the massive rapid police response in Washington and New York, and the all-hands intelligence community and law enforcement manhunt.

"What's striking about this particular information is its clarity," a senior official told ABC News.  "Usually intelligence comes in bits and pieces and officials have to connect dots.  Here, I'm told, there were no dots to connect, there was so much detail in one place at one time.  It was all laid out.  If it's a plot it is well-planned and there's an intention to go forward with it.  If it turns out not to be real then it's definitely not.  There is no middle ground."

As Americans begin to remember the 9/11 anniversary on Sunday, officials say they have no choice but to act as if the threat is real and the clock is ticking.

"Al Qaeda again is seeking to harm Americans and in particular to target New York and Washington," said Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in New York Friday.  "We are taking this threat seriously.  Federal, state and local authorities are taking all steps to address it."

Police and federal agents have run down stolen vehicles, stopped suspicious trucks, issued "Be On The Look Out's" (BOLOs) for persons suspected of harboring animosity that could be directed at ground zero or the president, on top of continuing the hunt for terror plotters.

The BOLOs were sent for subjects including a 2003 Afghanistan veteran believed armed with handgun and believed to have crossed the George Washington Bridge Saturday morning heading from New Jersey to New York.

That man, missing since Tuesday from his job, had been located in New Jersey by authorities a day earlier, and was the subject of a JTTF BOLO when his EZPass alerted police he had crossed the bridge.

Authorities have also investigated a stolen van on Long Island, a missing rental van near New York, possible stolen vans in Maryland, wiring boxes on bridges, packages and bags left in boroughs outside of Manhattan, airport security breaches at John F. Kennedy International Airport and suspicious packages at Dulles International Airport -- all seen since Friday night and all given extra scrutiny.

In the midst of the scramble Saturday, a Department of Homeland Security analyst sent out a bulletin that multiple sources in law enforcement say erroneously linked a man to the alleged anniversary plot.  That document was rapidly pulled back, but the JTTF in North Carolina continued to be besieged by calls.

"We found out it came from an overzealous DHS analyst.  Charlotte does have a case on him but he is not one of the three.  DHS is going to get spanked.  Charlotte is getting inundated with calls," one official told ABC News.

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio

40 Victims of Flight 93 Remembered in Memorial Dedication

NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP/Getty Images(SHANKSVILLE, Pa.) -- As guests entered the Flight 93 memorial dedication ceremony in Shanksville, Pennsylvania Saturday, a brass quintet dressed in white Navy uniforms performed solemn songs on stage around a basket of white roses.

No one was sitting outside the memorial selling T-shirts or snacks.  Instead, the town is in quiet remembrance, paying their respects to the 40 people who died on Sept. 11, 2001, when United Airlines Flight 93 crashed in a field in Stonycreek Township, just north of Shanksville.  The hijackers intended to crash the plane into the Capitol building or the White House in Washington, D.C., but passengers fought back and caused the plane to crash early, thwarting the attack.

The flag that flew over the U.S. Capitol on Sept. 11, 2001 was brought to Shanksville shortly thereafter to fly over the site of the Flight 93 crash, while workers looked for survivors in the wreckage.  On Saturday, that flag was raised once again at the dedication ceremony as a female soldier sang the Star Spangled Banner.

The memorial features a stone wall with the names of the 40 victims standing next to a field of grass and yellow wildflowers.  Trees line the walkway next to the wall.

As each name was read, two bells were rung.  A bagpipe performance of "Amazing Grace" followed the reading of the names.  Grammy-award winning singer/songwriter Sarah McLachlan sang "I Will Remember You."

"In the distance of a decade, 9/11 can feel like part of a different era," said former President George W. Bush.  But for the families, "that day will never feel like history.  The memory of that morning was fresh, and so is the pain."

"One of the lessons of 9/11 is that evil is real, and so is courage," Bush added.  "Americans are alive today because the passengers and crew chose to act, and America is forever grateful."

"There has always been a special place in the common memory for people who deliberately, knowingly, certainly laid down their lives for other people to live," said former President Bill Clinton.  "Ordinary people, given no time to decide, did the right thing...I hope and pray to God that people will remember this."

Vice President Joe Biden said passionately that the American spirit cannot be defeated, no matter what tragedy or hardship we face.

"And so we stand where it began," Biden said.  "We think of them.  We think of our nation.  We think of our history.  We think of the future.  And we think of it, because of them, with a confidence, knowing that ordinary citizens will continue to stare down fear, overwhelm evil, and bring forth hope where there seems to be none...that heroism is who we are, and that courage lies deepest and beats loudest in the heart of this nation."

President Obama and the first lady will visit the site on Sunday for the second phase of the dedication ceremony.

On Monday, three coffins filled with unidentified human remains from the crash will be buried at the memorial site in a private funeral service for family members.

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President, First Lady Honor Service Members Killed in Iraq, Afghanistan

Leslie E. Kossoff-Pool/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- President Obama and the first lady Saturday morning visited the section of Arlington National Cemetery where the U.S. service members who died in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are laid to rest to pay tribute to them.

The president and Michelle Obama made their way to section 60 of Arlington, where they met with a family visiting a grave and walked a row of grave sites hand in hand.  They also took a few minutes to greet others at the cemetery, shaking hands and taking pictures.

Section 60, located in the southeast part of the cemetery, is the burial ground for military personnel killed in Iraq and Afghanistan.  This was the president’s third visit to the section.

After the visit, the president and first lady traveled to a Washington, D.C.-area service event.  They will participate in a number of 9/11 memorials and tributes on Sunday.

The two wars launched by the United States after 9/11 have claimed the lives of 6,213 military personnel.

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio

9/11 Anniversary Plot: Terror Suspects Came From Inside U.S.

CIA.gov(NEW YORK) -- Officials told ABC News that the suspects alleged to be plotting a 9/11 anniversary terror attack began their journey to jihad inside the U.S., traveling to the al Qaeda stronghold in the tribal areas along the Afghanistan/Pakistan border in the late summer before returning to the U.S. on Aug. 30 or Sept 1.

This more specific information comes from the same CIA informant who said three people were dispatched by al Qaeda to carry out a bomb plot in either New York City or Washington D.C., and has allowed the intelligence manhunters to dramatically narrow down the pool of names that could match the partial descriptions the informant provided.

ABC News reported Friday that one name may have been identified already—about a day after the hunt began in earnest. The hunt has included an analysis of flight logs and other documents.

The intelligence from the informant, who is considered reliable by the CIA, led to the national state of high alert over the possible terror strike on the anniversary of 9/11, but the informant's information itself may be secondhand, ABC News has learned.

Despite the secondhand nature of the source, the high quality of the information led authorities to deem the threat credible, if uncorroborated, and triggered the massive rapid police response in Washington D.C. and New York City, and the all-hands intelligence community and law enforcement manhunt.

"What's striking about this particular information is its clarity," a senior official told ABC News. "Usually intelligence comes in bits and pieces and officials have to connect dots. Here, I'm told, there were no dots to connect, there was so much detail in one place at one time. It was all laid out. If it's a plot, it is well-planned and there's an intention to go forward with it. If it turns out not to be real then it's definitely not. There is no middle ground."

With the anniversary less than 24 hours away, officials say they have no choice but to act as if the threat is real and the clock is ticking.

"Al Qaeda again is seeking to harm Americans and, in particular, to target New York and Washington," Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Friday in New York. "We are taking this threat seriously. Federal, state and local authorities are taking all steps to address it."

It was only four days ago, on Wednesday in Pakistan, according to officials, that the CIA developed the information about a possible al Qaeda terror plot targeting the United States.

Three men, including at least one and maybe two American citizens, had allegedly travelled to the U.S. in mid-August, from Pakistan through Dubai, assigned to attack New York City or Washington D.C. with a vehicle bomb on Sept. 10, 11 or 12.

The intelligence was relayed to Washington and CIA headquarters late Wednesday night.

Early Thursday, at the White House, the president and the vice president received the first of several briefings on the threat.

Around 7 p.m. Thursday, as the president arrived to address Congress, the FBI and the CIA were in high gear.

"You use all the resources that we have, people are working 24/7 on this issue," said Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger, D-Md., ranking minority member of the House Intelligence Committee, who was among the members of Congress briefed on the alleged threat. "Any time you get a reliable source and you're attempting to corroborate it or confirm it, you use all the resources that we have. People are working 24/7 on this issue."

Late Thursday night, the FBI and Homeland Security issued a bulletin to 18,000 law enforcement agencies detailing the threat, including explosives, small arms and poisons.

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio

Two, Maybe Three Americans Involved in 9/11 Terror Plot

Mladen Antonov/AFP/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- Officials may have the name of one of the suspected bomb plotters behind the specific, credible but unconfirmed threat announced Thursday against the U.S.

The 24-hour intelligence manhunt included an analysis of flight logs and other documents following a report from a CIA informant that three people were dispatched by al Qaeda to carry out a bomb plot in the U.S., intending to strike either New York or Washington D.C.

The three men, at least two, could be three American citizens or those with visas, and may have allegedly travelled to the U.S. in mid-August. 
 
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo ordered additional state troopers to help secure the World Trade Center site, Penn Station, Grand Central Station, bridges and tunnels, and other key infrastructure sites and state facilities.

Homeland Security is adding additional security at airport checkpoints and boosting the number of air marshals aboard flights.

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio

Sept. 11 Memorial Services Underway

Jewel Samad/AFP/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- Memorial services are well underway to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks.

Former Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush will join Vice President Joe Biden and Speaker of the House John Boehner and family members of Flight 93 at the dedication of the Flight 93 National Memorial in western Pennsylvania Saturday at 12:30 p.m. The memorial honors those killed on Flight 93, which crashed near Shanksville, southeast of Pittsburgh.

St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York City will host a service Saturday at 2:00 p.m. honoring the 343 New York firemen who lost their lives at the World Trade Center. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano will be in attendance.

New Jersey Governor Chris Christie will join other New Jersey natives in commemorating  the 10th anniversary in the dedication of the Empty Sky Memorial which displays the names of the 746 New Jersey residents killed in the attacks. The dedication will take place Saturday at 11:00 a.m. in Liberty State Park, CRRNJ Terminal, N.J. 

President Obama and First Lady Michelle will participate in a service project Saturday as part of National Day of Service to honor the Sept. 11 anniversary at 12:10 p.m.

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio

Alleged 9/11 Anniversary Plot: Possible Suspect May Be ID'd

Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- Officials may have the name of one of the suspected bomb plotters after a 24-hour intelligence manhunt, U.S. officials tell ABC News.

The hunt included an analysis of flight logs and other documents following a report from a CIA informant that three people were dispatched by al Qaeda to carry out a bomb plot in the United States, in either New York or Washington.

The intelligence from the informant, who is considered reliable by the CIA, led to the national state of high alert over the possible terror strike on the anniversary of 9/11, but that the informant's information itself may be secondhand, ABC News has learned.

Despite the secondhand nature of the source, the high quality of the information led authorities to deem the threat credible, if uncorroborated, and triggered the massive rapid police response in Washington and New York, and the all hands intelligence community and law enforcement manhunt.

"What's striking about this particular information is its clarity," a senior official told ABC News. "Usually intelligence comes in bits and pieces and officials have to connect dots. Here, I'm told, there were no dots to connect, there was so much detail in one place at one time. It was all laid out. If it's a plot it is well-planned and there's an intention to go forward with it. If it turns out not to be real then it's definitely not. There is no middle ground."

No significant new information has come in to authorities Friday that adds to the threat picture, according to administration, law enforcement and intelligence officials.

Still, with the anniversary less than 48 hours away, officials say they have no choice but to act as if the threat is real and the clock is ticking.

"Al Qaeda again is seeking to harm Americans and in particular to target New York and Washington," said Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in New York Friday. "We are taking this threat seriously. Federal, state and local authorities are taking all steps to address it."

It was only two days ago, on Wednesday in Pakistan, according to officials, that the CIA developed the information about a possible al Qaeda terror plot targeting the U.S.

Three men, including at least one and maybe two American citizens, had allegedly travelled to the U.S. in mid- August, from Pakistan through Dubai, assigned to attack New York or Washington with a vehicle bomb on Sept 10, 11 or 12.

Late Wednesday night, the intelligence was relayed to Washington and CIA headquarters.

Early Thursday, at the White House, the president and the vice president received the first of several briefings on the threat.

Around 7 pm. Thursday, as the president arrived to address Congress, the FBI and the CIA were in high gear.

"You use all the resources that we have, people are working 24/7 on this issue," said Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger, D-Md., ranking minority member of the House Intelligence Committee, who was among the members of Congress briefed on the alleged threat. "Any time you get a reliable source and you're attempting to corroborate it or confirm it, you use all the resources that we have. People are working 24/7 on this issue."

Late Thursday night, the FBI and Homeland Security issued a bulletin to 18,000 law enforcement agencies detailing the threat, including explosives, small arms and poisons.

At first light Friday morning, police in New York set up roadblocks and traffic checks throughout the city. Trucks passed through a cordon of officers and cars with radiation monitors and other sensors, backing up traffic for miles. Heavily armed police and national guardsmen carried out a highly publicized drill at New York's Grand Central Station.

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio

Northeast Flooding: 14 Dead, 45 Trillion Gallons of Rain

Mark Wilson/Getty Images(WILKES-BARRE, Pa.) -- The rains and flooding caused by the remnants of Tropical Storm Lee have led to the evacuation of more than 100,000 people in the Northeast and dumped enough rain to fill Dallas Cowboys Stadium more than 50,000 times.

Lee and its aftermath have been attributed to at least 14 deaths. Virginia's governor declared a state of emergency Friday after flooding submerged parts of the I-95 corridor and left people stranded in their cars. President Obama declared a state of emergency in New York and Pennsylvania.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration estimated that 45 trillion gallons of rain fell on the United States in the wake of Lee. That's enough rain fill the NFL's largest enclosed stadium, the Dallas Cowboys Stadium, 57, 842 times.

The Susquehanna River in Pennsylvania is finally receding, but officials worry about the integrity of its levees and urge evacuated residents not to return to their homes.

The river reached its highest level ever Thursday night, overwhelming flood gauges. Officials revised their estimate of the river's crest at Wilkes-Barre, Pa., to 42.66 feet Friday, nearly four feet higher than first thought. Officials warn that's "well beyond the design" of the levee system.

"We are in a precarious situation," said Jim Brozena, executive director of the Luzerne County Flood Protection Authority. "We need people who are ordered to evacuate to adhere to those orders, to stay out of affected areas so that we can [get] things done and hopefully prevail against the river."

At least 75,000 people around the Susquehanna River are under a mandatory evacuation. Communities not protected by the levees have seen hundreds of homes and buildings damaged.

Friday afternoon, the National Guard used a boat to rescue 11 people, including two children, who were trapped on the second floor of a home in West Pittston, Pa.

The devastation in the region recalls Hurricane Agnes, which ripped through the mid-Atlantic in June of 1972, killing more than 100 and causing significant flooding, the brunt of which was felt in Wilkes-Barre.

A persistent area of low pressure associated with Lee's remnants will remain over the area throughout the weekend, according to the National Weather Service. It is expected that the area will see an additional four to seven inches of rainfall in the coming days.

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio

Phoenix Goddess Temple Raided as Alleged Brothel

Backpage dot com(PHOENIX) -- Arizona prosecutors have charged more than 30 people affiliated with the Phoenix Goddess Temple, a 10,000-square-foot alleged brothel that had been operating under the pretense of providing "religious" services for hundreds of dollars in cash "donations," police said.

On Sept. 7, 2011 police raided the Phoenix Goddess Temple, an alleged brothel, arresting 18 people.

"They were committing crimes under the guise of religious freedom," Phoenix police spokesman Steve Martos said. "It's a sad situation when people are trying to hide behind religion and church to commit a crime."

The "temple" had been operating in Phoenix since 2009, but authorities didn't become aware of it until residents began complaining. After a local newspaper visited the alleged brothel and published an in-depth story, police launched a six-month investigation culminating in the arrest of 18 people Wednesday. They are still hunting down the other 19.

It was the largest Arizona prostitution bust since authorities broke up the tri-state "Desert Divas" ring in 2008.

Four of those indicted are men, but none of them are johns. Charges include prostitution, pandering and conspiracy.

During the investigation, police discovered the Goddess Temple was operating another alleged house of prostitution in Sedona, Ariz., which was also raided Wednesday.

Goddess Temple founder Tracy Elise, known within her business as "Mystic Mother," was one of the 18 arrested Wednesday. She had also been involved with a similar alleged brothel in Seattle, Wash., that had been shut down in 2009.

The Phoenix Goddess Temple still has several advertisements on the adult entertainment section of classified ads website Backpage.com. An ad for Iyata dated Sept. 5 showed a woman in what appears to be a belly-dancing outfit. "I will ignite you with my touch, breath, and Love. We will Cultivate your ecstasy to it's highest potential," the ad says.

The Phoenix Goddess Temple did not immediately respond to an interview request from ABC News.

Organization leaders had said in prior media interviews that they are not prostitutes, but religious healers focusing on "Root Chakra."

"There's no science and provability about this [healing system]," Elise told the Phoenix New Times in February. "But it works."

The county attorney, however, isn't buying it.

"We're not viewing this in any way as somehow protected by the first amendment," Montgomery said. "This is not religious expression. This is a criminal activity and those responsible thought they were being too clever by half by coming up with different terms."

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio

Feds: New York Man Arrested on Way to Jihad

Medioimages/Photodisc(NEW YORK) -- Law enforcement officials Friday announced terrorism charges against a New York resident who was arrested at JFK airport in September while allegedly attempting to travel to Pakistan and join a jihadist cell there.

Agron Hasbajrami, a legal U.S. resident and citizen of Albania, was picked up Sept. 6 after he allegedly exchanged emails with a contact in Pakistan who authorities said admitted he was involved in violent military operations that had killed American soldiers.

Hasbajrami told the contact he wanted to travel abroad to "marry with girls in paradise," according to an indictment unsealed today. Hasbajrami also allegedly sent more than $1,000 to Pakistan "to support his contact's terrorist efforts," said a statement released by New York prosecutors.

Hasbajrami was nabbed in JFK before boarding a flight to Turkey. He was carrying a tent, boots and cold-weather gear, prosecutors said. When investigators searched his home, they said they found a note that read, "Do not wait for invasion, the time is martyrdom time."

"The vigilance of law enforcement has resulted in the capture of another alleged aspiring terrorist bent on traveling overseas for violent jihad," U.S. attorney Loretta Lynch said in a statement. "We will spare no effort in stopping terrorists before they strike."

If convicted, Hasbajrami could face up to 15 years in prison.

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio