Pimentel's alleged targets included U.S. troops returning home from Iraq and Afghanistan. Pimentel is reported to have shown theological interest in
Anwar al-Awlaki, posting at least fifteen video clips of the extremist cleric to his YouTube account and posting materials from Awlaki and other terrorists on his website, trueislam1.com. After his arrest, information surfaced that the
FBI had declined to get involved in the case as they thought Pimentel was incapable of successfully executing the attack and was merely
mentally unstable.
The Huffington Post reported that Pimentel smoked
marijuana with the
NYPD's cooperating
informant in the case, and was likely
high when making some of the incriminating statements recorded by police. Police outlets claim that he was planning to change his name to Osama Hussein to celebrate his heroes
Osama bin Laden and
Saddam Hussein, though these claims have been heavily disputed by members of the
Hamilton Heights community. ==See also==