New York bombing suspect's father says the FBI is 'punishing his family for their mistakes and refusing to let his relatives fly in from Afghanistan' 

  • Mohammed Rahami said on Saturday the FBI made 'mistake after mistake'
  • Accused the bureau of 'punishing' the family for his son's wrongdoing
  • Ahmad Rahami is accused of planting bombs in New York and New Jersey
  • His father says he tried to warn the FBI about his son's behavior in 2014
  • But FBI official said Mohammed never brought up potential radicalization

The father of New York bombing suspect Ahmad Khan Rahami believes the FBI is being unfair to his family.

Mohammed Rahami said on Saturday that the FBI had made 'mistake after mistake' in handling the case. He accused the bureau of 'punishing' the family for his son's wrongdoing by barring them from travelling to the United States from Afghanistan.

The FBI did not 'do its job properly' by failing to act when he contacted investigators in 2014 with concerns his son could be a terrorist, Mohammed said.

He claimed he told investigators that his son had become 'bad' and his personality had changed after returning from trips to Pakistan and Afghanistan.

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Mohammed Rahami (pictured) said on Saturday that the FBI had made 'mistake after mistake' in handling the case of his accused terrorist son, Ahmad Rahami
Ahmad (pictured) remains hospitalized with gunshot wounds after a police shootout

Mohammed Rahami (left) said on Saturday that the FBI had made 'mistake after mistake' in handling the case of his accused terrorist son, Ahmad Rahami (right)

The elder Rahami (pictured during an interview last month) claimed he told the FBI that his son had become 'bad' and his personality had changed after trips to Pakistan and Afghanistan

The elder Rahami (pictured during an interview last month) claimed he told the FBI that his son had become 'bad' and his personality had changed after trips to Pakistan and Afghanistan

A senior FBI official last month pushed back against the elder Rahami's claim that he warned agents about his son.

FBI agents interviewed the father after a 2014 incident in which Ahmad was arrested on charges — later dropped — that he stabbed one of his brothers in the leg, according to the FBI official.

But this official insisted that Mohammed 'at no time' discussed his son's radicalization or potential interest in al-Qaeda, the Taliban or their propaganda. 

Mohammed said US authorities recently turned back his wife and one of his sons when they tried to travel from Afghanistan to the United States.

He said Ahmad's wife was also refused entry into the country. Mohammed would not reveal where his daughter-in-law was living, but said her family is from the Pakistani city of Quetta.

When he was arrested, Ahmad (pictured after a shootout with police last month) was carrying a journal that praised Osama bin Laden and other militants, prosecutors said

When he was arrested, Ahmad (pictured after a shootout with police last month) was carrying a journal that praised Osama bin Laden and other militants, prosecutors said

 Ahmad is accused of planting bombs in New York and New Jersey that wounded 31 people last month. Pictured is the scene at an explosion in New York City's Chelsea neighborhood

 Ahmad is accused of planting bombs in New York and New Jersey that wounded 31 people last month. Pictured is the scene at an explosion in New York City's Chelsea neighborhood

He urged US authorities to allow his relatives to travel to the United States, saying they are law-abiding citizens.

Ahmad is accused of planting bombs in New York and New Jersey that wounded 31 people last month.

The Afghan-born US citizen remains hospitalized with gunshot wounds after a police shootout.

When he was arrested, Ahmad was carrying a journal that praised Osama bin Laden and other militants, prosecutors said.

In the diary, he fumed about what he saw as the US government's killing of Muslim holy warriors, according to authorities.

The elder Rahami said he had been given no information on his son's condition in hospital.

He expressed his 'sympathy for all those who suffered' in the blasts.

'My son's bad act damaged our repute, it defamed my motherland and it caused bad impression about Islam, which stands for peace,' he said.

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