NEW YORK, United States — U.S. authorities charged a 35-year-old woman Thursday with attempting to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization after she allegedly told an FBI informant that she wanted to destroy New York State Capitol buildings and kill lawmakers.
Court filings identified the woman as Jessica Bowie, who authorities said had converted to Islam and became an online supporter of the Islamic State group.
According to a criminal complaint, Bowie expressed support for the extremist group online and posted anti-American messages, including statements supporting the perpetrators of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
Investigators said Bowie told an FBI informant that she wanted to learn how to make explosives and discussed plans to attack the New York State Capitol in Albany.
She allegedly told the informant that she planned to visit the Capitol grounds to observe security measures. She also discussed using an anarchist publication to find information that could help with an attack.
In encrypted messages, Bowie allegedly said she wanted to destroy parts of the building, kill senators while they were meeting and destroy government documents, according to the complaint.
She also allegedly considered posing as a food delivery worker to gain access to the building and plant a bomb before fleeing to Syria.
Authorities said Bowie later discussed returning to the United States to attack other high-profile locations, including Times Square in New York City.
The FBI arrested Bowie on Aug. 19 after she allegedly obtained a food-delivery bag and materials that could be used to construct a bomb, including nails that investigators said could serve as shrapnel.
Bowie was scheduled to appear in court Thursday. Her attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
