NEW YORK, Sept. 16 (UPI) -- Police sources say an ongoing anti-terrorism operation in New York and Denver is aimed at thwarting a potential attack aimed at mass transit.
The New York Daily News said Wednesday police and federal agents are set to launch additional raids and have brought in an elite FBI SWAT team to take part.
The fear is that a possible Denver-based terrorist cell with links to al-Qaida has been plotting a multiple-bomb attack on New York's subway system similar to the 2004 train bombings in Madrid that cost 191 lives.
Sources told the newspaper an earlier search warrant turned up a collection of backpacks and cell phones; however, the sources did not specify where they were found.
Najibullah Zazi, 25, of Colorado, was identified as a key figure in the investigation but has denied any involvement in terrorism. Zazi has not been arrested, but sources told the News he was recently pulled over in New York. Documents allegedly describing the construction of bombs were said to have been found in his rental car.
"The FBI is seriously spooked about these guys," a former senior counterterrorism official told the News. "This is not some … FBI informant-driven case. This is the real thing."
