The FBI official in charge of international terrorism before September 11th said today he did not know an agent had warned three weeks before the hijackings that he suspected Zacarias Moussaoui was plotting a terrorist act.
Michael Rolince, the chief of the FBI's international terrorism operation section in 2001, said he was unaware of a report by Harry Samit, the agent who arrested Moussaoui three weeks before the deadly airliner hijackings that killed 3,000 people.
Mr Rolince was speaking testifying at Moussaoui's sentencing trial in today. Moussaoui, an admitted al Qaeda member, has pleaded guilty to six charges of conspiracy in connection with the attacks.
The hearing will determine if he is sentenced to death.
Mr Samit testified yesterday that agency superiors repeatedly blocked his efforts to warn of a possible terror attack.
He said that after questioning Moussaoui he knew the Frenchman of Moroccan descent had "radical Islamic fundamentalist beliefs" and thought he was part of a bigger plot to attack the United States.
In an message to his superiors on August 18th, 2001, Mr Samit said he believed Moussaoui was "conspiring to commit a terrorist act."
But Mr Rolince said although he knew of Moussaoui's arrest, he did not know about the long report Mr Samit had sent to FBI headquarters. The bureau did not have enough evidence to charge Moussaoui at the time, he said.