A Connecticut man of Pakistani descent was accused on Tuesday of driving a failed car bomb into New York's Times Square after he was arrested at the JFK Airport upon departure, authorities said. 

Faisal Shahzad, a U.S. citizen who was born in Pakistan, will appear in Manhattan federal court later on Tuesday.

Shahzad was arrested at 11:45 p.m. on Monday (0345 GMT) at John F. Kennedy Airport in New York as he tried to board a flight to Dubai, Attorney General Eric Holder said on Tuesday. He was trying to board a flight to Dubai.

Investigators said he was apparently "trying to flee" the country.

"It's clear that the intent behind this terrorist act was to kill Americans," Holder told a news conference, urging the Americans to keep vigilant.

Official said Shahzad had recently returned from a five-month trip to Pakistan, where he had a wife, but was not apparently headed back there.

The suspect was believed to be the one who recently bought the 1993 Nissan Pathfinder SUV that was found loaded with gasoline, propane, fireworks and fertilizer in the center of the square on Saturday, official sources were quoted by the New York Times as saying.

Authorities identified Shahzad after tracking records of the vehicle back to its previous owner in Bridgeport, Connecticut, who had advertised it for sale on several websites.

The suspect bought the vehicle with cash, and the sale was handled without any formal paperwork. Officials said that the sloppy transactions practiced by the plotters suggested that the terrorist attempt was "hastily conceived."

Investigators are trying to find motives behind the plot as they started to explore whether Shahzad or others involved in the plot had been in contact with people or groups overseas.

Taliban operatives in Pakistan appeared to have mentioned the bomb plot and have claimed responsibilities in three videos released on the Internet after the incident. But there has been evident supporting these claims. Investigators didn't know whether Shahzad is linked to Taliban.

White House press secretary Robert Gibbs has already denounced the plot as an act of terrorism.

On Monday, the international terrorism branch of the Joint Terrorism Task Force, a multi-agency group led by the Justice Department, has taken over the investigations from New York police.