UNITED STATES V. MOHAMUD 19 On November 25, 2010, Thanksgiving Day, Mohamud drove to Portland and spent the day with friends. His friends said he seemed “happy,” although at dinner he became “reserved.” They all went shopping at an outlet mall that night. I. “Black Friday”—November 26, 2010 Early the next morning, on November 26th, Mohamud ran into a friend and told him that “I’m having the greatest morning of my life.” Around noon, Youssef picked up Mohamud and they drove to a store to buy reflective vests as part of their disguises. Then they met up with Hussein in downtown Portland. Mohamud appeared “happy” and “excited.” The three drove about a mile to the parked van. When shown the “bomb” in the back of the van (which an FBI agent had constructed to look real but which was, in fact, inert), Mohamud said it was “beautiful.” They returned to their hotel, ate, talked, and prayed. Shortly before 5:00 p.m., the three drove to the van. Youssef dropped off Mohamud and Hussein, then drove to a pre-arranged meeting location a few blocks west of Pioneer Courthouse Square. Hussein and Mohamud drove the van to Pioneer Courthouse Square. Before exiting the van, Hussein told Mohamud to connect the wires for the detonator to work. Mohamud did so, and then they walked several blocks to join Youssef in his car. The three drove toward a train station, dropped off Youssef, and then Hussein and Mohamud parked a few blocks from the station.