The arrest Wednesday of a Virginia man who thought he was aiding an Al Qaeda attack on the Washington, D.C., transit system is further proof that “radical jihadists” are inside the United States, and it’s a reminder to cities around the country that ground transportation is still a “highly attractive” target for terrorists, according to a New York Police Department threat assessment obtained by Fox News.

Federal prosecutors have charged 34-year-old Farooque Ahmed, a naturalized U.S. citizen from Pakistan, with providing material support to terrorists and collecting information for a terrorist attack. Over six months, Ahmed videotaped and scouted several sites for a 2011 attack, meeting at Washington-area hotels with individuals “he believed to be member of Al Qaeda” to hand off the materials he gathered, according to an indictment.

“The successful arrest of Farooque Ahmed may very well have thwarted devastating terrorist attacks which could have killed civilians as well as caused infrastructure and economic damage,” said the NYPD assessment, drafted by the department’s Counterterrorism Bureau Terrorism Threat Analysis Group. “While large scale terrorist attacks like September 11th remain a top priority for Al Qaeda’s central leadership, the threat posed by homegrown extremists, acting on their own within the U.S. is a serious concern.”

In particular, “homegrown” terrorists pose a “significant threat” because “their U.S. citizenship enables them to enter and operate within the United States with greater ease,” according to the “open source assessment,” meaning it was based on news reports and other publicly available information.

The NYPD assessment said buses, subways, railroads and other forms of public transportation “continue to be highly attractive targets for international terrorist organizations.”

Starting in April, Ahmed of Ashburn, Va., watched and photographed the Arlington Cemetery, Courthouse, Pentagon City and Crystal City Metrorail stations outside Washington, according to the indictment.

“Terrorists actively perform extensive pre-operational surveillance, including taking photographs, observing security measures, and drawing diagrams in order to ensure structural damage and maximize casualties,” said the NYPD assessment, issued Wednesday afternoon. “Mass-transit railways and subway systems remain attractive and vulnerable targets for terrorist groups. Security personnel must remain vigilant to suspicious activity in public transportation networks near their facilities.”

During a September meeting at a hotel in Herndon, Va., Ahmed suggested that rolling suitcases be used to hide explosives instead of backpacks, and he said that he wanted to kill as many military personnel as possible, according to the indictment.

Four months earlier, during a meeting in a Sterling, Va., hotel room, Ahmed told an individual that he was planning to go to Saudi Arabia in November for the Hajj pilgrimage, but after the trip he might be ready to travel overseas to conduct “jihad,” according to the indictment.

Officials say that at no time was the public in danger during this investigation. The FBI was aware of Ahmed’s activities from before the alleged attempt began and closely monitored his activities until his arrest, according to U.S. officials.

According to an FBI affidavit unsealed Thursday, Ahmed came onto the FBI’s radar in January, after he and “an associate were inquiring about making contact with a terrorist organization in order to participate in jihad by traveling overseas to fight coalition forces in Afghanistan and/or Pakistan.”

During subsequent FBI surveillance, Ahmed told two individuals that he has trained to “fight jihad,” namely visiting a shooting range, purchasing firearms, studying martial arts, and learning “knife and gun techniques,” according to the FBI affidavit.

Asked where Ahmed’s “associate” is now, two law enforcement officials declined to answer. Another official pointed to a Justice Department statement saying that “there remains no threat” to the general public in regards to this case.

The NYPD assessment, meanwhile, said New York City “remains a major target” for terrorist groups and for people like Ahmed.

In September 2009, FBI agents in Colorado arrested an airport shuttle driver who was plotting to bomb the New York City subway system.

26-year-old Najibullah Zazi, a legal permanent resident from Afghanistan, pleaded guilty to three terrorism-related charges in February. He faces a maximum statutory sentence of life in prison for the first two counts and an additional 15 years in prison for the third count.

As for Ahmed, he made his initial appearance in federal court Wednesday afternoon, and a detention hearing is set for Friday afternoon in Alexandria, Va. If convicted of the charges against him, he faces a maximum of 50 years in prison.

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(Source: Fox News)