Ahmad Khan Rahami: Chelsea bombing suspect pleads not guilty to attempted murder charges

Rahami appeared before the court from his hospital bed – he was apprehended after a shootout with New Jersey police on 19 September

AP

The man accused of setting off a series of bombs throughout New York and New Jersey pleaded not guilty to the attempted murder of New Jersey police officers.

Ahmad Khan Rahami, 28, appeared in court via video and delivered his plea from a hospital bed.

The suspect has been hospitalised since his 19 September capture, following a shootout with police in Linden, New Jersey. He faces five counts attempted murder, in addition to his charges related to the explosions in Manhattan and New Jersey.

Graphiq

Thirty-one people were injured in the 17 September blast in the Chelsea neighbourhood in New York City.

Federal authorities filed charges against Rahami on 19 September. Charges include use of weapons of mass destruction, bombing a place of public use, destruction of property by means of fire or explosive, and use of a destructive device during and in furtherance of a crime of violence.

The suspect's father, Mohammad Rahami, said he notified the FBI of suspicions about his son in 2014.

"Two years ago I go to the FBI because my son was doing really bad, O.K.?" Mr Rahami said. "But they check almost two months, they say, 'He’s OK, he’s clean, he’s not a terrorist.' I say 'OK'."

"Now they say he is a terrorist," he added. "I say 'OK'."