FBI Detonates Homemade Explosives From Pennsylvania Storage Linked to Accused ISIS-Inspired Gracie Mansion Plotters

Controlled detonations at storage

FBI bomb technicians conducted multiple controlled detonations at a Public Storage facility in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, after federal investigators found explosive residue there linked to an alleged terror plot. 6abc Philadelphia reported that “FBI investigators conducted at least three controlled detonations at a Public Storage in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, late Monday,” while ABC7 New York said agents “blew up the containers” after recovering “three containers carrying explosive residue.” NBC 4 New York similarly stated the agency “found explosive residue in a Pennsylvania storage unit” as part of the investigation.

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Suspects and ISIS link

Authorities say the explosive residue and containers are connected to two suburban Pennsylvania men charged in an alleged ISIS-inspired plot targeting a protest outside Gracie Mansion. ABC7 New York identified the suspects and linked them to the events in Manhattan, reporting prosecutors and FBI officials said the pair “drove to New York City on Saturday and joined a throng of counter-protesters” and that they are accused of throwing IEDs. NBC 4 New York named the suspects and said they “told police after their arrests that they were inspired by the Islamic State group,” while newsradio 1040 who described the federal charges as including “attempting to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization and use of a weapon of mass destruction.”

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Alleged attack details

Reports describe how the alleged devices were deployed outside Gracie Mansion and how they failed to cause mass casualties. ABC7 New York said the suspects “threw and ignited two objects, one of which was confirmed to be an IED during the protest,” and newsradio 1040 who detailed that Balat “allegedly hurled a jar-sized device packed with the explosive TATP” which “extinguished itself just steps from police officers.” NBC 4 New York also reported that officers questioned one suspect who said he hoped to do “even bigger” damage than the Boston Marathon bombing, reflecting prosecutors’ claims about intent.

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Charges and prosecution

Federal and local officials have treated the incident as a serious terrorism case, detaining the two men without bail and emphasizing the threat they posed.

ABC7 New York reported a federal magistrate “ordered both men held without bail,” NBC 4 New York noted they were arrested and questioned about ISIS inspiration, and newsradio 1040 who quoted FBI New York leadership and the U.S. Attorney stressing the intent to “incite fear and mass suffering” and that such violence “will be met with swift justice.”

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Local searches and evidence

Investigative activity spanned searches of homes, the vehicle used by the suspects, and the storage unit near one suspect’s family home, with local effects on the storage site and community.

ABC7 New York said the storage site is “not far from where the FBI executed search warrants at the homes of the 18-year-old Emir Balat and 19-year-old Ibrahim Kayumi,” NBC 4 New York located the site “near where Balat’s family lives,” and 6abc Philadelphia described on-scene actions: “Only Action News was there as investigators set off the detonations... Video from Chopper 6 shows law enforcement digging holes in a nearby grassy area.”

Newsradio 1040 who added that searches of the suspects’ vehicle turned up “a fuse, a metal can, and a list of chemical ingredients used to build explosives,” underscoring the breadth of the probe.

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