US says man targeted military sites

June 24, 2011|Associated Press

LEESBURG, Va. — A Marine Corps reservist arrested in a security scare near the Pentagon last week was charged yesterday in a series of predawn shootings at the Pentagon and other military buildings in the Washington area last year.

Yonathan Melaku, 22, of Alexandria, has been in custody since early last Friday, when he was caught after fleeing from police while trespassing inside Arlington National Cemetery. His behavior and possessions prompted suspicion from authorities, who closed the highways leading to the Pentagon during the Friday rush hour and launched an intensive investigation.

Federal prosecutors said in court documents yesterday that they found bomb-making materials in Melaku’s backpack and later, inside his home, found a typewritten list of potential bomb components. Investigators also found a video he took of himself firing shots outside the National Museum of the Marine Corps last fall and repeatedly saying the Arabic words “Allahu Akbar,’’ which means “God is Great.’’

“That’s what they get. That’s my target. That’s the military building. It’s going to be attacked,’’ he said in the video, which shows him firing shots out the passenger side window at the museum, according to court papers.

Melaku lists his religion as Muslim in military papers, according to a Marine Corps spokesman. He has been a Marine reservist since September 2007 but has never been deployed overseas.

Investigators said Melaku was carrying a backpack last Friday with a quantity of ammonium nitrate, widely used in explosives; a spiral notebook containing references to Al Qaeda, the Taliban, and Osama bin Laden; spent 9mm shell casings; and cans of spray paint.