hill. a man arrested taken down with a suicide vest. new details emerge about the plan and its execution. we begin to connect the dots across northern virginia. >> good evening, we're live from capitol hill tonight, the target of a planned terror attack. the first suicide bombing on u.s. soil. the plan came to a halt today when fbi agents arrested a 29-year-old man from morocco living in orge earn virginia. just a few minutes after, federal agents arrested him, that man came within minutes of possessing and setting off what he thought was a bomb. but it was in fact not so. the explosives were not real. the fbi was watching the whole time. nbc news has learned that president obama was told last night that the fbi's plans to make an arrest today, undercover agents were intimately familiar with the timing and details.

we have team coverage on this story tonight. we're going to talk to the former landlord who is so suspicious of the man who was arrested today, he called the police more than a year ago. >> it's the question everyone wants to know about the snow, are we getting any? let's get the latest from doug kammerer? what do you think? >> ihink some areas will see snow, most likely not everybody seeing the snow tomorrow, a very nice and very mild day. some locations near 60 degrees. our storm system down to the south is going to start to get its act together, make its way our way, and by sunday afternoon, most of the area will be seeing some snow here. i revised my numbers a little bit and changed the numbers on the 7-day forecast. if you want to think about how much i think you could get in your area sunday, i'll have that

forecast coming up in a few minutes. jackie benson joins us with details hidden in the paperwork. >> reporter: these court documents describe a man who absolutely intended to kill people at the u.s. capitol this afterno afternoon. in a federal courtroom in alexandria, attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction against u.s. property. his target, the u.s. capital, specifically the visitor's center. in chilling detail, court documents describe his movements this morning. he got into a van near his alexandria home. he contained a bomb that could be detonated by cell phone and a mac-10 weapon. he requested a gun in case he had to shoot officers at the

capitol. al khalid learned the men he thought were his al qaeda coy conspirators were actually federaling agents and that both the bomb and gun were inoperable. witnesses say it was like a scene from a movie. >> where were they? >> right here outside. >> the moroccan citizen who's been in the u.s. illegally since 1999 had done a test explosion with agents at a quarry in west virginia. he even had a goal for his suicide bombing. he told the undercover agents he would be happy killing 30 people. the fbi says he's been under surveillance since december. they do believe he was acting alone. jim, back to you. >> thank you, jackie. >> within minutes of that arrest on capitol hill. federal agents raided the apartment in alexandria tonight. we spoke with some of the neighbors in the community and we spoke with his former landlord in arlington.

shemarry stone is just off king street tonight. >> reporter: his neighbors that live behind me are surprised he's now a terror suspectp. >> pretty much shock and fear. >> they describe how they fear ed he lived so close. >> other neighbors told me he kept to himself. >> it was a pretty inactive apartment. i didn't see a lot of activity. >> now we're bringing to you another apartment building where his former landlord said he lived inside this apartment. >> what he was engaged in suspicious activity. >> frank was his former landlord in arlington for seven months in 2010. he called police to complain about al khalid, his unusual behavior, and frequent package delivers. i suspected he may be making

bombs in his apartment. he eventually had him evicted for not paying the rent. >> did he ever make anti-semitic statements or say he was going to bomb the u.s.? >> no, i never heard him say that, no. >> but you knew something was wrong? >> yeah, something wasn't going right. he was -- he threatened to harm me it it was really unusual. >> neighbors told me that they thank the fbi for breaking up this alleged terror plot. in alexandria, i'm shamari stone news 4. >> federal agents also raided a house in south arlington this afternoon. a source close to the investigation tells us it was not connected to the terror plot. the man who lives there does know al khalife. the activity of tourists were affected for the afternoon as

can you expect. >> pretty intense. but there's a lot of security, a lot of people are nervous. >> it's shocking to hear about it, it's pleasing to know they're on top of it. >> some people in fact that were inside the capital were never evacuated. nor were they ever in any danger. joining me now is it nbc news terrorism analyst roger crese. let's talk about the manpower and the resources that are necessary to pull off an operation like this. >> in this case, the fbi was up on al khalife for over a year. you had the washington field office, agents in alexandria, and in northern virginia working it. it was a sustained effort well over a year in the making. that's the good news. >> you're telling me there was or is good news about this, and there's also bad news about this. >> the good news is, the fbi was up on al khalife very early on.

when he was in that aspirational phase aspiring to conduct an attack, the bureau was already on him. when he got to the operational phase, the bureau had him completely under wraps and was never in any real danger. the bad news, this is another example of a self-starter, a lone wolf, we're going to see more of those down the roads. we're going to prepare for it. we're going to recognize law enforcement is doing a fantastic job recognizing these people. >> that could be an example of that sign and slogan we see all the time? if you see something, say something. in this case it seems to have worked. >> if an individual sees something that is strange, it's their responsibleabiliility to law enforcement. >> there are a lot of these kinds of operations that we don't hear about and never will. does that go on all the time. >> the bureau is track down leads and identifying individuals who may be of

individuals of concern. once they go from that aspirational stage to the operational stage, that's when the fbi will wrap them up. so far so good. but there's a lot of work ahead of us. >> we have a lot work to do. thank you very much. we invite you to stay with news 4 for continuing coverage of this terror plot arrest today. we'll have updates throughout the night on nbcwashington.com. and bring you the latest over the air beginning tomorrow morning at 6:00. wendy, back to you. >> thanks, vance. there was a lot of news going on today. huge cheers at the maryland state house. that's what happened when the marriage equality bill passed this afternoon. it needed 71 votes, and that's what it got. governor o'malley raced down stairs from his office and hugged the speaker of the house. citizens who have been waiting in the hall since this morning celebrated as well. >> the dig niltty of every individual. these guys did this, this man did this. lawmakers accepted two last minute amendments to help secure

the vote. one has the law take effect january 2013. the other would require an illegal challenge to this law to be complete before it takes effect. the bill is expected to sail through the senate. in new jersey, governor chris christie vetoed the gay marriage bill. he's a republican, the only way he will allow same sex marriage in that state is through a constitutional amendment that would then need to be approved by the voters. here at home, two firefighters left the hospital tonight, they fell through the roof of a high school this afternoon because a big fire started around lunchtime there. the students and teachers were evacuated. there's extensive damage to the roof. not clear if the school will be open on tuesday, or if classes are going to have to be held elsewhere. down in charlottesville, closing arguments could come tomorrow in the trial of george hughley. the jurors heard from hughley's

godmother and from two teenagers who saw yeardley love and yugly get into an argument just days before she died. he's charged with her murder. the judge told both sides to prepare for a full day saturday, tomorrow. friends and family will say good-bye to whitney houston in new jersey tomorrow. there will be songs, speeches and prayers. at an invitation only service at the new hope baptist church in newark. aretha franklin and stevie wonder will be performing. and houston willing buried next to her father. you can watch that funeral on nbcwashington nonstop. we're going to be streaming online on nbcwashington.com. the service is expected to start at noon tomorrow. it's a commonly prescribed drug for anxiety. but abuse and addiction are real concerns. coming up next, doreen gentzler sits down with a recovering xanax addict. doug is finalizing his

forecast. snow, no snow? we okay, people, let's get started. pete, did you forget yours? me pete, me use pen! (laughter) sorry i'm late, i was in the 16th century looking for pete's pen. (laughter) guys, guys. take it easy, ok? pete's mom is videochatting me, and she wants her pen back! ok, alright, well. i just got one. so... yeah, you've got a little...

yep, i can feel the wet patch. don't look at it. when it's on your mind, it's on ebay.

xanax, millions of people in america are on it, it is great for anti-anxiety and is widely prescribed. doctors are saying it is also being widely abused and they are becoming addicted to it. doreen gentzler has the report. >> i first started using xanax

when i was 19 years old. i took it at a party, and blacked out the first time i took it. >> nick is a recovering xanax addict. >> i was taking probably 12 to 15 pills a day sometimes. >> it's the 11th most prescribed drug in the u.s. it's typically used to treat anxiety and panic disorders. it's commonly abused and habit forming. it's one of the most abused sedatives among people ages 12 and older. >> absolutely, xanax can be addictive. >> dr. wilson compton says most users take the drugs safely following doctor's orders. >> they're taking them to get high or for intoxication. >> one reason for addiction, people will feel withdrawal symptoms immediately. >> one issue with xanax is that

when people stop it, they may not expect the severity of symptoms that they can experience. the withdrawal symptoms from hair heroin and opiates is expected. people don't expect that this much with xanax. >> reporter: people can experience seizures, and according to the fda you don't need to take large doses of the drug to become dependent. daily use of a prescribed dose can cause the drug to be habit forming. >> if you're taking xanax for a medical condition or taking on a regular basis. do not stop it suddenly. definitely work with the physician to gradually taper it. >> a spokeswoman for pfizer, the manufacturer of xanax says xanax when taken as prescribed is a treatment option that has benefited millions of patients.

it's imperative that prescribers communicate the potential risks associated with xanax to patients before prescribing the product. >> for recovering addict nick, wasn't until he blacked out while driving on xanax and seriously injured three people that he decided to kick the drug. >> it's really sobering to know that my actions caused innocent people great bodily injury. >> doreen gentzler, news 4. >> nick's case is extreme. nih experts stress that thousands of people take this drug safely all the time and they don't become addict to it. a lot of people are anxious about the snow, but i don't know, should we be? >> no. >> do we need to be medicating o ourselves for the snow? >> if you were hoping for a lot of snow.

if you were hoping for a little bit, you guys are the big winners. >> we have mostly clear skies right now, and temperatures that have been well more than average. the winter roller coaster continues. we've been on the ups. tomorrow we're going to go up even higher. i think tomorrow is going to be a gorgeous day with temperatures and could be near 60 degrees. currently right now, way above average. winds north-northwest at 7 miles an hour. 34 in culpepper. 28 in manassas. that's the cooler area, 40 in laplata. storm 4 radar, nothing to show for in our region. have you to go out to the west to see where our storm is located. you can see where it's located. watch it coming out of the mountains of mexico. and really blow up here. there are flood watches all across the south.

this is going to produce a lot of rain out there. it's going to have cold air coming down from the north. what it's not going to have is that northerly component to it, that's not going to allow us to get into the heavy snow, and maybe not get into the snow at all north of the washington, d.c., metro area. it's all because of this guy right here, hoping to pick this up to bring it a little further to the north. i don't see that happening, tons of rain and maybe severe weather over the south over the next two days or so. here's the storm itself, down to the south far enough down that we may see flakes in the washington area. the heaviest staying in through portions of southern virginia in through west virginia here before moving out. we dry out and see plenty of sunshine. if we did see snow, it would all be melting monday. it's not going to be a big event the at all across much of the area. a few flakes, maybe not any accumulation at all, from washington up to the north, back to the north and west, including the panhandle of west virginia.

the areas that will get hit the hardest will not get hit this time. maybe 2 to 4 inches here, maybe more, but i'm not thinking too much more than this. a coating, two inches, that includes parts of southern maryland. it's going to be so warm early, anything that does fall will most likely melt. especially on those roadways. this area here, this is definitely the prime spot for snow, the weather service says maybe five inches or more. that's the criteria for winter storm watch. i would not be surprised, however, to see it drop back down to a winter weather advisory tomorrow night. we'll wait and see about that one. still, you folks to the south and west, back toward culpepper, charlottesville, have the best chance of seeing snow. cool to start, 27 in some of the coldest areas, to about 34 in the city. tomorrow afternoon, simply gorgeous. a beautiful saturday afternoon. get out and enjoy it if you can. 54 to 59 degrees. a little breezedy.

winds out of the southwest at 10 to 20 miles an hour. then comes sunday. raise temperatures a little bit on sunday much that's good news too if you like it warmer. snow to the south, breezy on monday, 50 on tuesday. watch this, back to the mid to up ir50s by the middle of next week. the winter of no snow, at least in the washington, d.c., area. >> continues. >> it looks like it may continue. >> chuck will have the latest. >> all right. >> you can't scare us. still ahead, we're going to go back to vance on capitol hill. next in sports, the caps come through in the clutch. [ female announcer ] more people are using wireless devices

in more ways than ever. and our networks are getting crowded. but if congress frees up more wireless spectrum, we can empower more people to innovate, create jobs, and put momentum behind our economy. and a spectrum auction could raise as much as 30 billion dollars to help fund the payroll tax cut. it's simple. more spectrum means more freedom. for everyone.

so happy days? >> happy days. the capitals starting their road trip in florida. >> winning is good. >> if you play for the florida panthers, go ahead, take your best shot at former teammate tomas okung. he's played really well. two starts, two shutouts, and a combined 62 saves. tonight in florida, okung trying to help the caps shut down the southeast division leading panthers. coach hunter, they trailed the panthers by four points. final minute of the first period, no score. steven weiss to tomas fleischman. the former cap, beats okung. there goes the shutout, here's the good news, it's the only goal okung gave up. third period. caps on the power play, alex ovechkin side of the vet.

nice. it's ove's 24th of the season, game tied at one. later in the third, still tied at one. alexander semin, bottom of the screen. he says to thee doing, you're not stopping this shot. his 16th of the season. it was the game-winner. caps beat the panthers, washington now trails florida by two points in the standings. the capitals continue their four game road trip tomorrow night against tampa bay. the knicks lose for the first time since jeremy lin stepped into the starting lineup. >> did you get that? >> no. struggling early, the first quarter, he had five turnovers and just two points. he finished with a season worst nine turnovers in the game. lin would rebound second quarter, goes coast to coast for

the bucket. knicks down 4 at half time. late fourth quarter. new york down 76-71. lin drives pullup, knocks down the jumper, finished with 26 points, it's a three-point game. new orleans wearing their mardi gras uniforms, crashing the jeremy lin party. vasquez to marinelli. the former terp had 14 points, 15 assists. lin-sanity will continue. john wall and the wizards on the road against utah. john wall up top to javale mcgee. mcgee had 15 points. the wizards did not have an answer for al jefferson. 26 points in the first half. he finished with a game high 34. final seconds of the third quarter. jazz sitting on 97 points.

alec burke for three, buries it. utah scores 100 points in three quarters, the jazz beat washington 114-100. the wizards record drops to 7-24. >> were you -- >> i was tweeting that.

[ male announcer ] the draw of the past is a powerful thing. but we couldn't simply repeat history. we had to create it. introducing the 2013 lexus gs, with leading-edge safety technology, like available blind spot monitor... [ tires screech ] ...night view... and heads-up display. [ engine revving ] the all-new 2013 lexus gs. there's no going back. before we go tonight, we want to share some of the expressions of gratitude from lawmakers in washington.

gratitude for the fine work of the men and women who helped prevent the attack on the capital today. vincent gray tweeted, thanks to the fbi and the capital police for continuing to keep the district safe from terrorist plots. and eric cantor, the house majority leader wrote, these brave members of our law enforcement community make daily sack firifices in their daily w to keep us safe. words well spoken for a job well done. wendy, back to you. recapping our other big story tonight, celebrations taking place around maryland. the marriage equality bill passed, it needed 71 votes and that's exactly what he got. martin o'malley has promised to sign the bill after it comes to his desk. that is our broadcast, have a wonderful weekend. the tonight show is next. we thank you for joining us.

>> announcer: it's "the tonight featuring rickey minor