Ore. Bomb Suspect Pleads Not Guilty

The 19-year-old Somali-American accused of trying to explode a car bomb at a Christmas tree-lighting ceremony has pleaded not guilty to at tempted use of a weapon of mass destruction. Mohamed Osman Mohamud's lawyer accused the FBI of entrapping his client, who was arrested after an elaborate sting operation, Reuters reports.

The teen was "drawn into trouble by "quite sophisticated government agents" who were "basically grooming the individual," the lawyer said. Attorney General Eric Holder rejected the claim that Mohamud was a victim of government entrapment. "This was an individual who was given a number of opportunities to desist from his course of action but at every turn decided that he wanted to continue," he said. The judge set a tentative date of Februray 1 for a jury trial. (More Mohamed Osman Mohamud stories.)