Christmas Day Terror Suspect Moved to Prison; Air Security Measures Questioned

WASHINGTON, Dec. 27, 2009 — -- The 23-year-old Nigerian man charged with attempting to blow up a Detroit-bound airliner on Christmas was transferred today from the University of Michigan Medical center, where he was treated for burns, to a federal prison in Milan, Mich., 50 miles from Detroit.

Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab was on Northwest Airlines flight 253 from Amsterdam to Detroit, when passengers heard a loud pop and noticed smoke and flames coming from his legs. A Dutch film director immediately approached the suspect, put out the flames, and subdued him with help from other passengers and crewmembers.

Abdulmutallab was charged Saturday with attempting to destroy or wreck an aircraft, and placing a destructive device in a plane. Abdulmutallab faces a federal court hearing Monday at 2 p.m., during which prosecutors will seek to obtain DNA samples, per federal rules. will not be appearing at his court hearing tomorrow. Abdulmutallab is not expected to be at the hearing.

While Obama administration officials tried to reassure the country that the response to the incident proved that the airline security measures put in place after the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, are working, a second incident -- on the same flight number as the Christmas Day attempted bombing -- sparked new fears.

At around 12:30 p.m. ET, Northwest Airlines alerted the Transportation Security Administration of a suspicious male who spent a considerable amount of time in the airplane lavatory. Federal law personnel responded immediately. As with the Christmas day incident, President Obama was briefed on the emergency while vacationing in Hawaii. It turned out to be a false alarm – a man with food poisoning, but it underscored the real threat faced just two days ago.