FBI agents acknowledge they didn't initially know if a man was serious when he talked about assembling a mobile X-ray device to sicken or kill Muslims — or if he was even capable of it.
Testifying Tuesday in federal court, Special Agent Chris West and an undercover operative identified only as Special Agent Jeff say they were trying to determine those answers in 2012 and kept contacting Glendon Scott Crawford about the proposal, even offering to provide components so he wouldn't turn somewhere else.
The 49-year-old Crawford has denied the charges, including conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction.
His attorney says Crawford, an industrial mechanic, was targeted in an elaborate FBI sting, and that no crime otherwise existed.
Federal authorities say Crawford first contacted two Jewish groups, leading to the investigation.
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