Busting the Would-Be Bombers

The Takeaway is continuing its coverage of the foiled New York City terror plot. Four men were arrested in an alleged plot to bomb two synagogues in New York City and shoot down military planes in Newburgh, N.Y. According to law enforcement officers, the plan was “aspirational” — that is, it wasn’t close to being realized. How did operatives infiltrate the group and quash their plans? And how did they decide when to bust the would-be bombers? To help answer those questions we turn to Bob Hennelly, a reporter at WNYC, and to Bruce Hoffman, a terrorism expert at the RAND corporation.