Man at the center of alleged plot admits to training in explosives with Al Qaeda
Official: Terror Plot Suspect Admits al Qaeda Ties, May Plead Guilty
Three-Day FBI Interrogation Said to Reveal Denver Man Had Received Explosives Training
The Denver man at the center of an alleged New York bomb plot, Najibullah Zazi, has admitted he has ties to al Qaeda and is in negotiations to plead guilty to a terror charge, a senior law enforcement official told ABC News.
The official said Zazi had received explosives training and his possible guilty plea would be part of a deal to cooperate with the government.
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The 24-year old Zazi had insisted he had "no ties, no connection to al Qaeda" in interviews with reporters earlier this week after his name surfaced in connection with the investigation.
But after two eight-hour interrogations at the FBI offices in Denver on Wednesday and Thursday, Zazi told a different story this morning, the law enforcement official said.
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The plea negotiations were first reported by the New York Daily News.
Zazi's lawyer, Art Folsom, told ABCNews.com Friday night that no plea deal "has been offered." He said Zazi will go through a fourth day of questioning Saturday at the FBI offices. Folsom refused to answer questions about the specific discussions taking place, but said his client is continuing to cooperate with investigators.
Folsom called the reports "completely unfounded."
Zazi has been under investigation for almost a year, according to law enforcement and intelligence officials. The CIA reportedly first learned of his alleged al Qaeda ties when Zazi visited Pakistan and officials said they later learned of "deeply troubling" conversations that were picked up on government intercepts.
Zazi and Folsom had maintained his trips to Pakistan were only to visit his wife.
A spokesperson for Folsom said the FBI has requested that Mohammad Zazi -- Najibullah Zazi's father -- meet with investigators at FBI headquarters in Denver this afternoon.
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