New Jersey Man Allegedly Involved In Al Qaeda Caught In Yemen

A New Jersey man is in Yemeni custody at a Yemeni hospital where he is reported to have attempted an escape and killed one of two guards watching him before he was recaptured:

FBI spokesman Rich Wolf in Baltimore confirmed Thursday that the agency is looking into the case of 26-year-old Sharif Mobley of Buena but wouldn't comment further.

WMGM-TV in Atlantic City quoted "federal sources'' as saying Mobley is the man accused of shooting two guards over the weekend in a Yemeni hospital where he was being held prisoner. One of the guards died, and the suspect was caught after a chase.

As his father, Charles Mobley, and his wife pulled out of their driveway on their way to see a lawyer Friday, he said: "I can tell you this: He's no terrorist.''

Security and hospital officials in Yemen told The Associated Press over the weekend that an al-Qaida prisoner receiving treatment in the Republican Hospital in San'a attacked the guards while trying to escape.

Hospital officials said the patient snatched a gun from one of his guards, shot at them and fled. Security forces chased the prisoner and apprehended him. Their smoke grenades set a small fire in the hospital.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity Sunday because they were not authorized to speak to journalists.

The West has expressed concern about the growing al-Qaida presence in Yemen.

He was apparently apprehended last week in Yemen for his involvement in several al Qaeda related terror attacks and there was some confusion over his identity and background as some reports indicated that he was a German citizen.

The FBI wont confirm that Mobley is connected with al Qaeda at this point, but only that they're interested in him (which is to say that the investigations continue into his background and connections stateside).

His father and former classmates can't believe that this is the same guy that the media reports are suggesting.