dictionary

Accused shoe bomber says he acted alone

Richard Reid is a British citizen and convert of Islam.

BOSTON, Massachusetts (CNN) -- Accused shoe bomber Richard Reid told interrogators he acted alone in trying to blow up an airliner over the Atlantic Ocean last year, according to court documents released Wednesday.

He said he was motivated by anger about the treatment of Muslims in Israel and the U.S. role in the Middle East, according to the documents.

Federal prosecutors released notes of their interrogations of Reid, along with some of his draft e-mails, as they tried to outline his motivation for allegedly attempting to blow up American Airlines Flight 63, en route from Paris to Miami, in December.

The prosecutors allege Reid, 29, a British citizen and convert to Islam, received training from the al Qaeda terrorist network in Afghanistan. His trial is scheduled to begin November 4.

Sources have told CNN investigators think Reid had at least some accomplices to help him plan the alleged mission and that he could not have constructed the explosive devices found in his shoes by himself.

French authorities have detained several people for questioning in connection with the incident.

Passengers and crew members on Flight 63 struggled with Reid and restrained him after he allegedly tried to ignite a fuse protruding from the tongue of one of his shoes.

The flight was diverted to Boston, where Reid is jailed on charges of attempted murder and the attempted destruction of an aircraft.

CNN NewsPass VIDEO Shoe bomb suspect Richard Reid tells investigators he had the idea after noticing Israeli airline security didn't check inside his shoes, CNN's Kelli Arena reports (September 12) Play video   EXTRA INFORMATION Read the charges U.S. v. Reid (FindLaw, PDF format)     LEGAL RESOURCES Latest Legal News Law Library FindLaw Consumer Center Select a topic Bankruptcy Discrimination Divorce Estate Planning Landlord-Tenant Personal Injury Taxes

According to notes taken by investigators who questioned Reid, he said he acted alone, and he talked about how a previous trip to Israel has affected him.

"His trip to Jerusalem further emboldened him to attempt an act against the West when he witnessed the many checkpoints and travel restrictions on Muslims," one interrogator wrote.

"Reid stated that it angered him to see 'Jews with guns' inside the mosque, and it also angered him that the Palestinian staff at the mosque seemed to question him more than the Israelis."

Reid was referring to a visit he made to the Al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, one of Islam's holiest sites.

According to the notes, Reid told investigators he bought the bomb materials in Amsterdam on the black market for $1,500 from people he did not know.

When pressed, Reid told investigators that they may have been non-Muslims from the Czech Republic and that they did not know he was a Muslim.

"Reid stated that he learned how to build the device from the Internet but refused to say the name of the Web site. Reid indicated that he did not trust other Muslims to provide him with the materials he needed and therefore obtained them on the black market," according to the interview notes.

He told interrogators "the idea of putting a device in his shoes came to him after he noticed that Israeli security did not check the inside of his shoes."

Questioned about other travels, Reid told the FBI he traveled to Pakistan in about August 2001 hoping to get into Afghanistan, but he could find no one to help him get to Peshawar, Pakistan, and then on to Afghanistan, according to the notes.

The documents also quote from draft e-mail messages Reid allegedly wrote his mother, several of which contain spelling errors.

In one, he writes about his duty "to help remove the oppressive american forces from the muslims lands," and indicates he expected to die "doing [his] part of the ongoing war between islaam and disbelief."

Reid asks his mother to forgive him "for all the problems i have caused you both in life and in death."

Prosecutors allege one of Reid's e-mail folders contained a "manifesto-type document" that Reid refers to as his will, which includes "a religious justification for killing women and children that is relevant to proof at trial of Reid's intent," according to court documents.

Lawyers for Reid are trying to suppress use of their client's e-mails at trial, but prosecutors contend proper search warrants were used to obtain the material.

From CNN producers Kevin Bohn and Carol Cratty.