UK counterterrorism investigators have been helping US authorities look into the incident, which is being treated by the FBI as a hate crime and an act of terrorism.
Last week, two men were arrested in the English cities of Birmingham and Manchester, and were held for questioning, Greater Manchester Police said without elaborating.
Akram arrived in the United States in late December via New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport, a US law enforcement source familiar with the investigation told CNN.
Akram had been known to UK security services and had been the subject of a brief investigation in 2020, a UK official told CNN on Tuesday. The investigation was closed when authorities determined Akram to no longer be a threat.
The FBI believes Akram was motivated in part by a desire to see the release of convicted extremist Aafia Siddiqui, who is serving an 86-year federal prison sentence in Fort Worth, they’ve said. She was not involved in the Colleyville standoff, her attorney has said.
Source : Nbcnewyork