enemy of Islam . `` The identification and apprehension of this defendant , who was acting alone , is a sobering reminder that there are people among us who want to do us grave harm , '' said James Jacks , the top federal prosecutor in Dallas . After casing a Wells Fargo Bank in the office tower in July , Smadi told an undercover agent he would target the facility , according to authorities . Initially Smadi told the agent he wanted to conduct the bombing on September 11 , but decided to wait until Ramadan ended September 20 , authorities said . `` Unbeknownst to Smadi , the FBI ensured the -LSB- vehicle-borne IED -RSB- contained only an inert/inactive explosive device , which contained no explosive materials , '' the Justice Department said in a written statement . Smadi will make his first court appearance before a federal magistrate judge in Dallas on Friday . The charge of attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction carries a potential sentence of up to life in prison and a $ 250,000 fine . Justice Department officials said the Dallas case was unrelated to the similar FBI sting in Springfield
WASHINGTON -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- A 19-year-old Jordanian bent on committing `` violent jihad '' was arrested Thursday after undercover FBI agents foiled his attempt to bomb an office tower in Dallas , Texas , authorities announced late Thursday . Authorities say a suspect tried to set off a bomb attached to a vehicle at the base of the Fountain Plaza tower . Federal officials said Hosam Maher Husein Smadi , who entered the U.S. illegally and lived in Texas , tried to set off an improvised explosive device attached to a vehicle at the base of the 60-story Fountain Plaza office tower . Counterterrorism officials arrested Smadi on Thursday before publicly disclosing a similar , but unrelated , terrorism sting arrest in Springfield , Illinois , Wednesday . A federal law enforcement official familiar with the cases said authorities feared word of the Illinois arrest could tip off the Texas suspect of an undercover sting operation . In a criminal complaint filed with Smadi 's arrest , counterterrorism officials said the suspect had been under `` continuous surveillance '' because of oft-stated determination to inflict damage and death against the United States , which he deemed to be an