A 29-year-old illegal immigrant from Morocco has been arrested and charged with a plot to carry out a suicide bombing at the U.S. Capitol Building

Amine El Khalifi, who had been living in Alexandria, Virginia, was apprehended while on his way to carry out the attack armed with an automatic weapon and an explosive vest device, according to federal court documents. Neither of the devices was working, however - El Khalifi had obtained them from undercover federal agents, who had rendered them useless. "Amine El Khalifi sought to blow himself up in the U.S. Capitol Building," said Neil MacBride, the chief federal prosecutor in Northern Virginia. "El Khalifi believed he was working with al-Qaeda and devised the plot, the targets and methods on his own." Following his arrest, El Khalifi made his initial court appearance before U.S. District Judge T. Rawles Jones Jr. If convicted, the suspect faces a maximum penalty of life in prison.