FBI Arrests 35-Year-Old Woman in ISIS Plot to Bomb New York Capitol

Q: How did a local woman plan to bypass historic Capitol security using just a simple food delivery bag?

She allegedly planned to exploit the routine familiarity of a food delivery by hiding an explosive in a DoorDash-style bag and carrying it into or near the New York State Capitol as if it were an ordinary delivery. According to federal prosecutors and the criminal complaint, Jessica Bowie repeatedly scoped out the Capitol, obtained bomb-making materials and discussed using the delivery bag as a disguise. Investigators say the idea was to make the device appear harmless and everyday, potentially lowering suspicion long enough to get close to lawmakers while the state Senate was meeting. The significance of that method is that it did not rely on defeating the building’s historic architecture or any dramatic breach. Instead, it allegedly depended on social camouflage: using a common service item that security staff and the public routinely see. Authorities say her planning also included timing the attack for when senators were in session, which suggests she was trying to maximize casualties inside a symbolically important government building. The plot was stopped before any attack occurred. Bowie has been charged with attempting to provide material support to ISIS, and the FBI said the case involved surveillance, attack planning and statements of allegiance to the group.

3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Aug 22

Aug. 19 marked the takedown of Jessica Bowie after prosecutors say she paid $350 to FBI informants and took possession of an inert handgun and dummy explosive for an attack on the New York State Capitol.
Court papers say Bowie, 35, scouted the Capitol five times in July and August, bought bomb materials including nails for shrapnel on Aug. 5, and planned to hide the device in a DoorDash bag to kill state senators.
The complaint says she was radicalized online, praised the Sept. 11 attacks that killed 2,977 people, pledged allegiance to ISIS by late May, and later used encrypted apps to spread propaganda and seek recruits.
Federal authorities charged her with providing material support to a terrorist group, a count she allegedly told agents she had already researched and knew carried up to 20 years in prison.