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September 25, 2009

'The Beauty Parlor Bomb Plan'

Rick Moran
Well, this is one way to downplay what is shaping up to be a massive plot involving several powerful bombs to kill a whole lot of Americans; let's name the plot something silly.

ABC News also helpfully includes a picture of an empty beauty parlor as if to underscore how dumb you are if you take the "Beauty Parlor Bomb Plan" seriously.

But the details leave open the possibility that while some of the principals may be in custody, others involved - as well as the bombs themselves - are still out there:

Zazi, 24, of Denver, first checked into the hotel Aug 28 after purchasing a dozen 32-ounce bottles of "Ms. Kay's Liquid" -- a hydrogen peroxide-based product, from a local beauty supply store, according to court documents filed by the Justice Department today.

Investigators say Zazi returned to the same hotel suite on Sept. 6 and 7, where he was seen on hotel surveillance cameras.

"Subsequent FBI testing for explosives and chemical residue in the suite revealed the presence of acetone residue in the vent about the stove," according to federal prosecutors.

Front desk staff at the hotel refused to comment and referred ABC News to the company's corporate headquarters, where spokeswoman Jennifer Kearney also refused to comment.

Zazi planned to use chemicals and hair care products he bought at beauty parlor supply stores to build a series of devastating bombs, according to a federal indictment made public today.

According to court documents, Zazi "purchased unusually large quantities of hydrogen peroxide and acetone from beauty supply stores in the Denver metropolitan area."

Former FBI agent Brad Garrett, now an ABC News consultant, said the alleged plot is "probably one of the more significant cases that the bureau has investigated since 9/11."

Apparently, those court documents reveal that authorities know more about this plot than they have let on in statements to the media - a lot more. Zazi not only purchased the materials, but also "cooked" the ingredients, combining them to make at least one bomb and probably several more.

But where are they? And who are his confederates? The lights are burning late in FBI and counterterrorism offices around the country as they race to find the answers to those questions.

And someone should tell ABC that they have extraordinary poor judgment in naming this plot so cavalierly.





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