"It's Time To Die"

At about 9:30 P.M. Monday evening, sixteen year-old Alif CHOWDHURY and his father, Ehsan CHOWDHURY were waiting outside of a second floor departure terminal prior to their flight to JFK Airport when the behavior of the younger CHOWDHURY became erratic, causing those nearby to alert airport security. Alif CHOWDHURY, dressed in a traditional Islamic white robe and wearing a backpack, was observed praying loudly in Arabic, shouting and ultimately claiming to have a bomb in the backpack he was wearing. Officers were quick to respond to the area.
While the officers were talking to the boy’s father, Alif CHOWDHURY became more agitated and according to witnesses at the airport, shouted "I have a bomb", "I want to die"' and "We're all going to die." As officers surrounded him with guns drawn, CHOWDHURY tore off his backpack and reached inside. At that point, officers wrestled him to the ground, subdued him and secured his backpack. Although there were no weapons or explosives found inside of his backpack, the teenager was carrying several cellular telephones.

The father and son, both of Middle Eastern descent, were waiting to return to their Garden City, Long Island home. The elder CHOWDHURY was reportedly in Buffalo to escort his son back home after visiting friends in the area. According to C. Douglas Hartmayer, the spokesman for the Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority that operates the Buffalo airport, Ehsan CHOWDHURY was cooperative when questioned by authorities, but his son become more agitated and combative. "He did say things like - apparently to his dad – “It's time to die. I'm not afraid to die," Hartmayer said. "And he ripped off his backpack and tried to pull something out of his backpack while saying, 'I'll kill you. It's time to die.'"

Officers arrested the teen, who was charged with two counts of disorderly conduct and taken to Erie County Medical Center in Buffalo for a psychiatric evaluation. Investigation revealed that Ehsan CHOWDHURY was reportedly escorting his son back to their Long Island home following his son’s visit to friends in the Buffalo, NY area.