Son of Boston police captain charged in terror bomb plot

“According to the complaint affidavit, on July 4, 2015, Ciccolo took delivery of four firearms which he had ordered from a person who was cooperating with members of the Western Massachusetts Joint Terrorism Task Force, and who had been communicating with Ciccolo about Ciccolo’s plans to engage in a terrorist act”, explained U.S. Attorney Carmen Ortiz.

After Ciccolo’s arrest, he grabbed a pen during a jailhouse medical screening and stabbed a nurse in the head, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation. According to the affidavit, he said the attack would include executions of students broadcast live online. “He said that the Boston Marathon bombing gave him the idea of what to do, using the same materials and emptying fireworks into a pressure cooker”.

Last week, FBI Director James Comey said the FBI had thwarted suspected deadly attacks timed for the holiday, but the director declined to elaborate on the nature of the plots or identify those arrested. He was previously convicted of operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of liquor so Ciccolo was prohibited from possessing these weapons and charged with a felony.

Court documents say investigators received a tip last September that 23-year-old Alexander Ciccolo wanted to go overseas to fight for ISIS.

In a meeting with the informant days before the arrest, Ciccolo is alleged to have said that he had changed plans and decided to attack a university “because there were many more people”. He was also recorded telling the informant about using weaponized pressure cookers. Ciccolo’s criminal past is not explained in the complaint, but the alcohol charge seems exceedingly odd for a jihadist on a mission for ISIS.

While at the Franklin County House of Correction, Ciccolo is accused of injuring a nurse by stabbing her in the head with a pen.

Ciccolo’s arrest on the July Fourth holiday came as law enforcement authorities had been placed on high alert for possible attacks inspired by ISIL. In October, Ciccolo had posted an image “that appeared to be a dead American soldier”, accompanied by a quote: “Thank you Islamic State!”

Ciccolo’s father, a captain with the Boston Police Department, had reported that his son had a history of mental illness.

Court documents indicate Ciccolo, of Adams, Mass., and the witness met and spoke on several occasions about a plan to obtain firearms and build improvised explosive devices for an attack originally scheduled to take place at a police station.