New York Federal prosecutors, along with the FBI and local police, announced on the 9th that charges have been filed against two suspects who threw explosive devices outside the mayor’s residence at Gracie Mansion. The charges allege that the two individuals were attempting to support the foreign terrorist organization known as the Islamic State (ISIS). Prosecutor Clayton stated that both suspects, after being arrested, claimed to have connections with ISIS, and urged anyone with information to provide more clues to the FBI.
The indictment indicates that on March 7th, there were simultaneous protests outside the mayor’s residence titled “Stop the Islamic takeover of New York City, Stop Muslim public prayers in NYC” and “Expel Nazis from New York City.”
At 12:15 PM, suspect Emir Balat detonated and threw the first explosive device among the protesters, before running to another location where he received the second device from Ibrahim Kayumi and threw it towards officers before both were apprehended by law enforcement.
During the escort, Balat told officers, “This is not a religion that only talks about the name of the prophet… We must take action!” and declared, “If I don’t do it, someone else will.” Upon arrival at the police station, he requested pen and paper and wrote, “All praise be to Allah, the Lord of all worlds! I declare allegiance to the Islamic State. You infidels, perish in anger!” The term “infidels” (Kuffar) in Arabic means “non-believers” or “heretics,” and “perish in anger” is an ISIS slogan.
When asked if he was aware of the Boston Marathon bombing and if he intended to cause similar consequences, Balat responded, “No, on a larger scale. That bombing only resulted in three deaths.”
Upon Kayumi’s arrest, he was directly asked why he did it, and he simply replied, “ISIS.” During questioning at the police station, he admitted his association with ISIS, stating that he had watched ISIS propaganda videos on his phone, and his actions that day were partly influenced by that content. He also mentioned feeling uneasy about the explosive devices on his hand earlier that day and would have been uncomfortable if they were also present in the interrogation room.
After the two suspects were detained, the FBI’s preliminary examination of the explosive devices revealed that they were made from glass jars covered with nuts and bolts to increase lethality, each equipped with a fuse. The analysis of the device thrown towards the protesters showed it contained highly unstable TATP (commonly known as “Mother of Satan”), which is extremely sensitive to impact, friction, and heat, and has been used in several terrorist attacks over the past decade.
The day after the incident, law enforcement officers found a vehicle registered under Balat’s family name in a neighborhood several blocks away from the mayor’s residence on March 8th. Inside the vehicle, they discovered a green substance believed to be a fuse, an empty metal can similar to the first explosive device, and a notebook. The notebook contained handwritten references to “TATP explosives,” chemical components such as “hydrogen peroxide,” “sulfuric acid,” “acetone,” and a page listing components like “aluminum can x6,” “a box of bolts x2,” among others.
18-year-old Balat is from Langhorne, Pennsylvania, and 19-year-old Kayumi is from Newtown, Pennsylvania. Both are accused of attempting to provide material support to a terrorist organization (maximum 20 years in prison), using weapons of mass destruction (maximum life imprisonment), transporting explosives (maximum 10 years in prison), and interstate transportation and receipt of explosives (maximum life imprisonment), among other serious charges.