The man taken into custody for questioning about bombings in New York and New Jersey lived with his family above a restaurant owned by his father, a few miles from Newark Liberty International Airport.
Ahmad Khan Rahami, 28, a naturalized U.S. citizen from Afghanistan, worked at First American Fried Chicken in Elizabeth, New Jersey, one customer said.
"He's a very friendly guy, that's what's so scary," said Ryan McCann of Elizabeth.
A U.S. law enforcement official said Monday that Rahami had been taken into custody after a shootout in Linden, New Jersey.
Neighbors had complained to Elizabeth officials that the family restaurant was a late-night nuisance. When the city passed an ordinance requiring it to close early, Rahami's father and two brothers sued the city, Elizabeth Mayor Christian Bollwage said.