N.J. teen arrested in threat against pope

Federal law-enforcement sources acknowledged Tuesday that a Camden County teenager was charged last month with plotting an attack against Pope Francis during his visit to Philadelphia, but they downplayed the seriousness of the threat.

The 15-year-old from Lindenwold, whose name has not been disclosed, is accused of viewing ISIS propaganda over the Internet, making overseas contacts online, and receiving information on building explosives through social media, said the sources, who were not authorized to speak publicly about the case. The purported plot was more "aspirational" than fully formed or imminent, they said, and they questioned the teen's mental health and ability to carry out his plan.

They spoke a day after Philadelphia's police commissioner and a key member of the U.S. House cast doubt on a Texas congressman's claim that federal agents had disrupted a threat related to the papal visit. Commissioner Charles H. Ramsey and Rep. Bob Brady (D., Pa.) said they were perplexed by the comments from Rep. Michael McCaul and knew of no potential threat related to Philadelphia.

In an interview Tuesday, Ramsey said the FBI told him that morning about the charges, but he said the arrest, first reported by ABC News, was being "blown way . . . out of proportion."

"There is no indication that he had any ability to carry out anything," he said. "There are no current threats. There's nothing."

That appeared to clash with a summary of the case that appeared in a joint FBI-Department of Homeland Security intelligence bulletin distributed to law enforcement agencies last month.

The document, according to ABC News, said the teen had been inspired by ISIS and "sought to conduct a detailed homeland attack which included multiple attackers, firearms, and multiple explosives, targeting a foreign dignitary at a high-profile event."

The teen has been charged with attempting to provide material support to a terrorist organization and to terrorist activity, the network reported.

A spokesman for U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman declined to comment on the case or confirm or deny whether charges had been filed; none were apparent in a search of federal court filings in Camden.

"We're not commenting on any specific charges against any specific defendants," said the spokesman, Matthew Reilly. "In general, federal cases involving juveniles are sealed."

The same tactic was used in the case against Mohammad Khalid, who at the time of his 2011 arrest was the youngest person ever indicted in the United States on terrorism charges.

Khalid was 17 when he was charged with aiding a terrorist cell that counted among its members a Montgomery County woman, Colleen LaRose, who was better known by her online name, "JihadJane." The charges against him were unsealed when he turned 18 while in custody, said Khalid's lawyer, Jeffrey Lindy.

News of the Lindenwold teen's arrest came two days after McCaul, chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, disclosed during an interview Sunday with ABC's This Week that a potential threat had been "disrupted."

It remains unclear whether McCaul was referring to the Lindenwold teen's case.

Officials in the Camden County suburb said they, too, had been left in the dark.

Lindenwold Police Detective Christopher Sherrer said federal authorities had not consulted with his department about the alleged threat.

The FBI's Philadelphia Office, which includes South Jersey, declined to comment.

"The FBI is working closely with the United States Secret Service and our federal, state, and local partners in advance of the papal visit to ensure the safety and security of all," the office said in a statement.

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Inquirer staff writer Michael Boren contributed to this article.