The federal government has been exploring a “Plan B” to deport a man who placed a bomb on a Hawaii-bound airplane in 1982 and who has remained in immigration custody since his release from prison in 2013.

Mohammed Rashed pleaded guilty in 2002 to his role in the bombing of Pan Am 830 that killed a Japanese teenager.

Under the terms of his plea agreement, the U.S. government said it would work to deport the Jordanian-born Palestinian after he finished his sentence.

Efforts to deport Rashed to the West Bank have stalled amid diplomatic complications since his release from prison. He remains at a New York detention facility.

At a court hearing last month, a Justice Department lawyer said the government was developing a “Plan B” strategy.

(AP)