Suspect's Dad: I Warned the U.S.

The terror suspect who tried to blow up a Northwest airliner on Christmas Day is the son of a Nigerian banker who warned the U.S. of his son's "extreme religious views" months ago, the father told a Nigerian daily. Alhaji Umaru Mutallab, a former minister and chairman of First Bank in Nigeria, said he was shocked his son was even allowed on a plane. A 23-year-old engineering student at University College London and a Nigerian citizen, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab may also be a terrorist working for al Qaeda, authorities say. Western officials have feared for some time that Nigeria, a country with a sharp Muslim-Christian divide, could be turning into a breeding ground for insurgents. Abdulmutallab’s visa documents show that he was en route to the U.S. for a religious ceremony, and officials have confirmed that his name has appeared in certain databases connected to terrorists. His banker father says his son may have recently visited Yemen, where Abdulmutallab reportedly received instructions for his attack. “I believe that he might have been to Yemen, but we are investigating to determine that,” he told the Associated Press.