Update: The man arrested at the Eden Center was Atal Bashar, 38, of Burke, a U.S. citizen born in Afghanistan. According to documents provided by the FBI, an explosive device was found last March in the Alexandria home of Bashar’s father. Bashar later admitted to building the device using fireworks, the affidavit states.
Fairfax County police, including a bomb squad, were called to the Eden Center this morning to assist in capturing a man wanted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
According to Fairfax County police spokesperson Don Gotthardt, the police were asked by the FBI to assist in the arrest and made a traffic stop in the Eden Center at around 9 a.m. Through what Gotthardt describes as “an abundance of caution,” the Explosive Ordnance Disposal unit was called in to inspect the vehicle involved in the traffic stop.
FBI spokesperson Lindsay Godwin said the charges against the man arrested this morning, as well as his name, are currently sealed. She added that while the bomb squad was on the scene, the area has been cleared and no devices were found.
