Attorney General Pam Bondi announced the DOJ had indicted the two suspects who allegedly threw bombs at a protest outside of Gracie Mansion in New York City on Sunday.
According to the criminal complaint, one man swore allegiance to ISIS while the other confirmed he was affiliated with the terrorist group.
Emir Balat, 18, and Ibrahim Kayumi, 19, face five charges, including Attempted Provision of Material Support and Resources to a Designated Foreign Terrorist Organization.
Other charges:
A right-wing activist staged a protest outside of Gracie Mansion against the Islamic calls to prayer.
A counter protest called “Run Nazis Out of New York City” occurred at the same time at the same place. Balat and Kayumi participated in this protest.
Officers arrested Balat and Kayumi for allegedly throwing devices at the right-wing activist’s protest.
The NYPD confirmed the device was a functioning IED. News 12 New York reported, “The devices, which were a bit smaller than a football, appeared to be a jar wrapped in black tape, importantly, with nuts, bolts, and screws, along with a hobby fuse that could be lit.”
“At the protest, at approximately 12:15 p.m., an individual later identified as EMIR BALAT, the defendant, ignited and threw an item (“Device-1”) toward the area where the protesters were gathered,” FBI Special Agent Jennifer Gioia wrote in the complaint. “Immediately after throwing Device-1, BALAT ran to another location down the block and received a second item (“Device-2,” and collectively with Device-1, the “Devices”) from an individual later identified as IBRAHIM KAYUMI, the defendant.”
Gioia explained that Balat activated the second device “near where several NYPD officers were standing, ran away from the NYPD officers, and jumped over a barricade. He was tackled and arrested by NYPD officers shortly thereafter.”
The complaint states that Balat, while in the car, said, “this isn’t a religion that just stands when people talk about the blessed name of the prophet . . . We take action! We take action!”; and “if I didn’t do it someone else will come and do it.”
At that station, Balat wrote on a piece of paper, “All praise is due to Allah lord of all worlds! I pledge my allegience [sic] to the Islamic State. Die in your rage yu [sic] kuffar! Emir B.”
Balat wanted to accomplish something “bigger” than the Boston Marathon bombing because that ended in “only three deaths.”
Police asked Kayumi why he attacked the protesters. “ISIS” was all Kayumi said.
Kayumi waived his Miranda rights, stating he was affiliated with ISIS.
The complaint also says that Kayumi confirmed “he has watched ISIS propaganda on his phone” and “his actions that day were partly inspired by ISIS.”
One device tested positive with TATP (triaceton triperoxide), which Gioia said is known as the “Mother of Satan.”
Gioia explained that TATP “is extremely sensitive to impact, friction, and heat; and has been used in multiple terrorist attacks over the last decade.”
Balat carried a Pennsylvania driver’s license, but police discovered a car with a New Jersey license plate registered to a member of Balat’s family.
The officers figured Balat drove the car because of the family connection, but also found a trove of evidence in the car:
From inside Vehicle-1, law enforcement agents recovered a coiled green material consistent in appearance with hobby fuse, an empty metal can of the same approximate dimensions and appearance as the can recovered from inside Device 1, and a notebook containing handwritten notes.One page of the notebook contains the note “TATP explosive”; another page contains a list of chemical ingredients, including “hydrogen peroxide,” “sulfuric acid,” and “acetone”; and a third page contains a list of components and quantities, such as “aluminum can x6,” and “a box of bolts ect [sic] 2x.” Based on my training and experience, I believe that these notes are a reference to materials that could be used to build explosive devices like the one that BALAT and KAYUMI used on or about March 7, 2026.
I also wonder how long Balat and Kuyami have been gone because Kuyami’s mother filed a missing persons report on March 7.
The FBI and local police zeroed in on two homes in Bucks County, PA, located north of Philadelphia.
CLICK HERE FOR FULL VERSION OF THIS STORY