Undercover agent thwarts ex-Marine’s deadly ISIS-inspired Christmas Day terror attack: FBI

A suspect is behind bars and a suspected terror plot planned for next week is foiled, according to the FBI.

As The Hill reported Friday, Everitt Aaron Jameson was arrested on suspicion that he was staging a Christmas Day massacre at a popular tourist destination in San Francisco, California.

The suspect allegedly chose Pier 39 on the presumption that an attack would produce a large number of casualties.

In order to inflate the number of victims, he allegedly plotted to use explosions near the pier to “funnel” as many people as possible into a smaller area.

Authorities believe Jameson planned to execute the violent act in the name of the Islamic State, or ISIS.

According to Fox News, the 26-year-old suspect is a former U.S. Marine who was discharged for failing to disclose his history of asthma.

Federal investigators have the information needed to halt the attack based on Jameson’s conversations with an undercover agent posing as a terrorist interested in helping him plan the attack, according to the FBI.

The agent, representing himself as an ISIS operative, reportedly convinced Jameson to delay his plan until further instruction from leaders of the terror organization.

The precise method of the planned attack is not clear from available reports, but Special Agent Christopher McKinney explained that the suspect cited terror attacks in San Bernardino, California, and New York City as inspiration.

McKinney said he assumed those references meant Jameson planned to use both a vehicle and firearms in the commission of the act. The suspect said he did not have a plan to escape the attack and expected to die at the scene.

In the days leading up to his arrest, Jameson had reportedly expressed a growing reluctance to go through with the attack.

He is facing charges related to providing material support or resources to a foreign terrorist organization.

[Featured image: Everitt Jameson/Facebook]