Naser Jason Abdo (born April 1, 1990) is an American former US Army Private First Class who was arrested July 28, 2011, near Fort Hood, Texas, and was held without bond for possession of an unregistered firearm and allegedly planning to attack a restaurant frequented by soldiers from the base.
He was convicted in federal court on May 24, 2012, of attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction, attempted murder of federal employees, and weapons charges.
He was sentenced on August 10, 2012, to two consecutive sentences of life in prison, plus 60 years.
After Abdo applied for conscientious objector status in the spring of 2010 pending his deployment to Afghanistan, the Army approved his discharge.
While processing him, officials found child pornography on his government-issued computer and in June 2010, the Army recommended that he be court-martialed.
Abdo denied the charges, and went AWOL from Fort Campbell, Kentucky, over the July 4 weekend.
Abdo is alleged to have planned the bombing because of his opposition as a Muslim to the U.S.
War in Afghanistan.
However, the US Attorney in the case, Robert Pitman, compared the plot to the 2012 mass murders by two other American men: the shootings at a movie theatre in Aurora, Colorado, and at a Sikh temple in suburban Milwaukee.
He said that Abdo had planned to use violence "to advance [his] twisted agenda."