Following the announcement of charges filed against 18-year-old Emir Balat and 19-year-old Ibrahim Kayumi, authorities are revealing new details about the alleged ISIS-inspired bombing attempt outside Gracie Mansion — and they underscore just how dangerous the situation could have been. Officials said Monday that at least one of the improvised explosive devices contained TATP, a highly volatile compound linked to numerous terrorist attacks worldwide. Additionally, officials revealed the suspects traveled from Pennsylvania and arrived in New York less than an hour before the incident, proceeding directly to the protest where they attempted to set off the devices.
Speaking at a press conference Monday afternoon, NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said the charges were filed in the Southern District of New York against the two defendants in connection with Saturday’s incident. The men are accused of attempting to provide material support to ISIS, a designated foreign terrorist organization responsible for deadly attacks around the world.
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SEE: DOJ Brings Hammer Down on Suspected Gracie Mansion Bombers, Reveals They Wanted Maximum Carnage
According to the criminal complaint, both defendants admitted they carried out the attack because of ISIS. Asked by a person in the crowd, "Why?" as he was being placed into a police vehicle following his arrest, one of the suspects, Kayumi, reportedly responded with, "ISIS,” a statement he repeated in recorded post-arrest interviews. The second defendant, Balat, allegedly made spontaneous statements expressing a similar motivation, telling investigators that “This isn’t a religion that just stands when people talk about the blessed name of the prophet — we take action,” and adding that if he had not carried out the attack, “someone else will come and do it.” Authorities say Balat also wrote a message pledging allegiance to the Islamic State, and adding, "Die in your rage, you kuffar!" (Tisch explained that "Die in your rage" is a slogan used by ISIS, and "kuffar" is an Arabic term for non-believers.)
Officials said the suspects hoped their attack would eclipse the scale of the Boston Marathon bombing, which killed "only" three people in 2013.
“This was not random violence,” Tisch said. “This was a planned attack motivated by extremist ideology and inspired by a violent foreign terrorist organization.”
Investigators recovered multiple improvised explosive devices linked to the defendants, including at least one device containing triacetone triperoxide (TATP, also sometimes referred to as "mother of satan") — a highly volatile explosive compound used in several terrorist attacks over the past decade. Authorities also discovered handwritten notes referencing TATP and listing chemical ingredients for the type of explosive device used inside a vehicle connected to the suspects, along with a third device.
READ MORE: DEVELOPING: 'Suspicious Device' Found Inside Vehicle Near NYC's Gracie Mansion
The two men allegedly traveled from Pennsylvania to New York City shortly before the attack. According to investigators, their vehicle crossed the George Washington Bridge at approximately 11:36 a.m. on Saturday, and the devices were ignited and thrown roughly 40 minutes later, at about 12:15 p.m. They were arrested almost immediately thereafter.
Law enforcement officials said search warrants have since been executed at residences connected to the suspects in Pennsylvania.
U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton said the two defendants face five federal charges stemming from the incident but emphasized that the allegations remain unproven and that both men are presumed innocent unless convicted in court.
Clayton called the alleged plan “chilling,” particularly given investigators’ claims that the suspects hoped to surpass the death toll of the Boston Marathon bombing.
“Free speech and peaceable assembly are the bedrock of American democracy,” Clayton said, adding:
“But violence is not protected. And it's not protected protest; it's not protected speech. In New York, violence — particularly violence that has a terrorist bent, violence that is meant to chill free speech, violence that is meant to keep us from assembling peaceably — will be met with swift justice.”
Officials credited the swift response of NYPD officers for preventing what could have been a far more devastating attack. Clayton said he watched video of officers running toward the scene despite the possibility that the devices could explode.
“That is the kind of commitment that makes this city great,” he said.
James Barnacle Jr., assistant director in charge of the FBI’s New York field office, said: “These were improvised explosive devices designed to inflict serious injury and death.”
Barnacle said the investigation highlights what law enforcement calls the “elevated threat environment” currently facing the United States.
Officials repeatedly praised the work of the FBI–NYPD Joint Terrorism Task Force, as well as assistance from U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the Port Authority Police Department, New York State Police, and the Department of Homeland Security.
During the question-and-answer portion of the briefing, Tisch declined to discuss whether the suspects were self-radicalized or recruited by others, saying investigators do not want to jeopardize the ongoing case. She did confirm, however, that the men appeared to have traveled to New York in response to the protest that had been planned near Gracie Mansion.
Authorities also noted both suspects have extensive travel histories in the Middle East, though they declined to elaborate further. However, officials also indicated that neither defendant has a prior criminal history.
Rebecca Weiner, the NYPD’s deputy commissioner for intelligence and counterterrorism, said the case fits a broader pattern seen among ISIS-inspired extremists in the United States and across Western countries, where radicalization increasingly occurs online and often involves younger individuals.
Weiner said bomb technicians conducted controlled detonations of two recovered devices, confirming that they contained highly dangerous materials. At least one of the devices contained TATP, which, as she noted, is an extremely volatile compound capable of causing significant destruction. Samples from the devices have been sent to the FBI lab for further testing.
“Had these devices functioned as intended,” she said, “they could have caused death and destruction.”
Tisch said the NYPD had already been on heightened alert amid escalating tensions overseas and increased protest activity in New York City over the past two-and-a-half years. She stressed that the incident would not change how the department polices demonstrations.
“It occurred at a protest, but it didn’t have to occur at a protest,” she said. “Our job is to ensure New Yorkers can exercise their First Amendment rights safely.”
Officials said the investigation remains ongoing as agents continue to analyze evidence and pursue additional leads.
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