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Suspected Suicide Bomber Arrested in Vologda

A man who was planning to be a suicide bomber was detained in Vologda after explosives intended for detonation were found his apartment, FSB investigators said Monday.

Officers from the Federal Security Service arrested the suspect on Saturday after a search of his apartment yielded several explosive devices including an F-1 grenade, blasting caps and an improvised shrapnel bomb containing screws and 200 grams of TNT, Interfax reported, citing the FSB.

Investigators also seized extremist religious literature and CDs containing recordings of al-Qaida ideologue Abu Yahya and Said Buryatsky, a Russian militant leader killed in a military operation in 2010.

The suspect, a native of Vologda whose name was not released, had previously been convicted of robbery, rape, vandalism and murder.

According to an FSB spokesman, the man served 17 years in prison and became an adherent of radical Islam in 2009 while serving time in the Arkhangelsk region with inmates convicted of terrorism, Interfax said.

He remains in custody and faces charges of illegally storing weapons, ammunition and explosive devices.

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