Fort Dix terrorism trial will focus attention on FBI informant's role

PHILADELPHIA -- Five years ago, he was a bankrupt felon with a conviction for passing bad checks. He was facing deportation. And he was living in a subsidized, low-income apartment complex in Paulsboro, N.J., scratching for cash by trying to sell used cars from the complex's parking lot. Today he is the central figure in the Fort Dix terrorism trial, an FBI informant who may have received more than $3,000 a month to wear a body wire and record conversations. Mahmoud A. Omar, whose immigration problems appear to have gone the way of his financial difficulties, spent more than a year working undercover in the case. While some details about his role have surfaced in pretrial documents, Omar's actions and motivation will be the focus of what co