The FBI had Hosam "Sam" Smadi under almost constant surveillance in the months and weeks before the Jordanian national attempted to blow up a Dallas skyscraper, according to newly released court documents.

But, according to a search warrant affidavit, tracking him wasn't always easy.

Agents twice placed a tracking device on Smadi's car, a 1991 Honda Accord, but because of the age and condition of the car, each time the device fell off, the affidavit stated. On the third try, agents secured the tracker with a different attachment in hopes it would hold, the affidavit stated.

Because the tracker was unreliable, however, agents went to a judge in September and got permission to ping Smadi's cellphone, including the specific latitude and longitude of his location.

According to the affidavit, Smadi's phone was in the name of a female co-worker, whom he paid monthly. Smadi once told an undercover FBI employee that the phone was in her name because AT&T required a social security number to perform a credit check and he did not have one.

Read the complete story at star-telegram.com