Plane suspect's father warned authorities

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ATLANTA, Dec. 26 (UPI) -- The father of Nigerian terrorism suspect Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab says he contacted the U.S. Embassy months ago warning of his son's radicalism.

Alhaji Umaru Mutallab received a text from his son implying he was leaving school in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, "for the course of Islam," a family source told CNN Saturday.

Abdulmutallab had studied engineering for three years at University College London. Mutallab lost contact with his son after Abdulmutallab left London for Dubai in November 2008, CNN said. The son reportedly disowned his family members and moved on to Yemen.

Abdulmutallab told investigators he attempted to blow up the plane on behalf of a Yemeni al-Qaida network, The Washington Post reported. Two months ago, the Post said, the network called for its followers to kill "apostates" and Westerners by methods including explosives on airliners.

After hearing the news of his son's arrest, Mutallab questioned why he was given a permit to travel to the United States considering he'd been reported to the embassy as a security risk, the Nigerian Tribune reported. Mutallab had also warned Nigerian security agencies of his son's extremist religious views six months ago, the Tribune said.