Alexandria Man Sentenced to 30 Years for U.S. Capitol Bomb Plot

Amine Mohammed El Khalifi, an illegal immigrant from Morocco living in Alexandria who plotted a suicide bombing at the U.S. Capitol, was sentenced to 30 years in prison on Friday, according to The Washington Post.

, saying he constructed a plot on the Capitol with men he believed were al-Qaida operatives. The men were actually FBI officials.

During a hearing in federal court in Virginia on Friday, Khalifi spoke only briefly. “I just want to say, I love Allah, that’s it,” he said, according to the Post. 

 in a parking garage at the Capitol where he told undercover police he intended to shoot people before detonating a bomb. The gun and bomb were inoperable and officials said the public was never in danger.

Khalifi did some last-minute planning for the proposed attack at an Alexandria hotel on Feb. 14, according to an FBI affidavit released the day of his arrest.

In December, Khalifi told undercover police he wanted to target an Alexandria office building, according to the affidavit. The building he targeted contains offices occupied by the U.S. military. Khalifi told undercover police that he was unsure about carrying out the plan because the military only occupied part of the building.

Khalifi also told undercover police that he wanted to target a synagogue or an Army general.

On or about Jan. 8, El Khalifi purchased two jackets and a cell phone "in and around" Alexandria, the FBI affidavit noted. He also purchased nails for a bomb at a hardware store in Alexandria.

The FBI searched a home located at 3800 Wyndham Circle in Alexandria on the day El Khalifi was arrested in Alexandria.