Two Pakistani-born brothers accused in a plot to detonate a bomb in New York City to avenge the deaths of people killed by drone attacks in Afghanistan, pleaded guilty to federal terrorism charges on Thursday in Miami.
Raees Alam Qazi, 22, and Sheheryar Alam Qazi, 32, were arrested in 2012, accused of providing support to a foreign terrorist organisation to use a weapon of mass destruction.
The brothers are naturalised US citizens who were living at the time of their arrest in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The younger brother pleaded guilty on Thursday of conspiring and attempting to provide material support to terrorists and conspiring to assault a federal employee. He faces a maximum sentence of 35 years in prison followed by supervised release for life.
His older brother also pleaded guilty to conspiring to provide material support to terrorists as well as conspiring to assault a federal employee. He faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison followed by supervised release for life.