Talk about getting arrested on suspicion of terrorism and then getting invites from President Barack Obama and Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg! 14 year-old Ahmed went through the same ordeal, when he was arrested on charges of building a hoax bomb.
The Muslim teen decided to make a digital clock from a pencil case over the weekend at his home and brought it to school with him, at MacArthur High School in Irving, Texas. Alarmed, the teachers suspected it was a hoax bomb and called the police, who arrested him. Images from Ahmed’s arrest went viral and sparked the trend #IStandWithAhmed on Twitter.
Regarding the incident, this is what Ahmed stated:-
“It was the first time I brought an invention to school to show a teacher,” Ahmed said in an interview with WFAA television. “They arrested me and told me I committed the crime of creating a hoax bomb.”
“The student showed the device to a teacher who was concerned it was possibly the infrastructure for a bomb,” revealed Irving Police Chief Lary Boyd in a press conference. “The student would only say that it was a clock and wasn’t forthcoming at that time with any further details.”
The news shocked America and even reached the President of the United States, Barack Obama. The President took to his Twitter account and extended an invite to Ahmed at the White House:-
Cool clock, Ahmed. Want to bring it to the White House? We should inspire more kids like you to like science. It’s what makes America great.
— President Obama (@POTUS) September 16, 2015
Even Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg was inspired by Ahmed’s initiative to build and invited the Muslim teenage student to come by Facebook sometime.
Ahmed revealed that he was thinking about switching schools from McArthur to any other school for his education. As for college, the boy stated that he wanted to go to MIT.
