Faisal Shahzad biography

Synopsis

Profile

Infamous person, terrorist suspect. Although records are unclear, Faisal Shahzad is believed to have been born in Nowshera, Pakistan, a city known for its Afghan refugee camps, on June 30, 1979. Later documents, however, report that he was born in Karachi, Pakistan.

In 1998, Shahzad attended a educational program in Karachi affiliated with Southeastern University in Washington. That same year, he was granted a student visa to the United States, and arrived in America on January 16, 1999.

Shahzad enrolled at the University of Bridgeport in Connecticut, where he received a bachelor's degree in computer science and engineering in 2000. In January 2002, Shahzad obtained an H1B visa, good for three years with a possible extension. Shahzad landed a temporary job as a clerk in the accounting department of cosmetics company Elizabeth Arden in 2001. He then earned a master's in business administration in 2005. The next year, Shahzad took a job as a junior financial analyst at Affinion Group in Norwalk, Connecticut.

Shahzad married Denver, Colorado, resident Huma Mian, but after the couple's house was lost to foreclosure in 2004, the couple made plans to leave the country. After having two children, Shahzad obtained citizenship through their marriage in 2009. The family headed to Pakistan shortly after. While there, Shahzad allegedly took training in Waziristan, Pakistan, learning how to make incendiary devices.

Shahzad made headlines May 1, 2010, when officials claim he attempted to detonate a homemade car bomb in New York City's Times Square. Shortly after the car began smoking, officials tracked Shahzad to a Dubai-bound flight at John F. Kennedy Airport. Law enforcement took him into custody late Monday.

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