Improvised explosive found at protests near Manhattan’s Gracie Mansion, Mamdani’s official residence, NYPD says

New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said at least one suspicious device was recovered during protests in front of Gracie Mansion, the official residence of Mayor Zohran Mamdani, was an improvised explosive.

Tisch told reporters at a news conference Saturday evening that an anti-Islam protest on Manhattan’s Upper East Side was organized by people associated with Jake Langa pardoned January 6 rioter and far-right influencer, and who called himself “Stop the Islamic Takeover of New York City/Stop Muslim Public Prayer in New York City.”

The protest associated with Lang drew about 20 participants, Tisch said, which started around 11 a.m. near East End Avenue and East 87th Street. A counter-protest called “Drive the Nazis out of New York/Stand Against Hate” drew about 125 participants, Tisch said.

Suspects arrested during confrontational demonstrations

NYPD officers arrived on the scene and separated the groups into designated protest areas, police said.

Tensions between the two groups began to escalate and around 12:15 p.m., an individual participating in the first protest used pepper spray against counterprotesters, police said. Tisch said the suspect was later arrested.

Tisch said that shortly after 12:30 p.m., a counterprotester, identified as Emir Balat, 18, of Pennsylvania, lit and threw a flaming device toward protesters. According to Tisch, witnesses saw flames and smoke when the aircraft struck a barrier in a crosswalk, a few meters from the officers. The device then turned off.

In videos depicting the chaos, a man appears to shout “Allahu Akbar” just as Balat throws the device that Tisch described as “a jar wrapped in duct tape, including nuts, bolts and screws and a hobby fuse.” The videos have been verified by senior CBS News staff. It is not clear from the videos who was shouting these words.

Balat then allegedly ran away and collected a second device from Ibrahim Nikk, 19, also from Pennsylvania, then turned on the device and started running with it before finally dropping it, Tisch said.

Balat and Nikk were taken into custody. According to police sources, investigators were trying to determine if at least one inspired by the extremist messages of ISIS.

The devices contained explosive materials, according to sources

The NYPD bomb squad was called in to examine the devices. Tisch said it was unclear at the time whether the devices were functional improvised explosive devices or hoax devices, and required further testing and analysis by police.

“The NYPD Bomb Squad conducted a preliminary analysis of a device that was ignited and deployed at a protest yesterday and determined that it was not a hoax or smoke bomb. It was in fact an improvised explosive device that could have caused serious injury or death,” Tisch said in a statement Sunday. “More in-depth analyzes will be carried out, notably on a second device.”

Law enforcement sources close to the investigation told CBS News that the devices contained triacetone triperoxide (TATP), a highly volatile and unstable explosive material that is often synthesized from acetone and hydrogen peroxide and comes in the form of a white crystalline powder. The devices consisted of a sports drink bottle containing explosive material placed inside a glass jar and surrounded by fragments, with a type of fuse used for fireworks, the sources added.

“These devices were built with the intent to kill or maim,” said Richard Esposito, CBS News law enforcement contributor and author of “Bomb Squad,” a book profiling the New York Police Department’s Bomb Squad.

The devices were secured on Sunday and a search was underway at Balat and Nikk’s residences, electronic devices and social media, sources said.

Mamdani was inside the Gracie mansion

The NYPD confirmed that the mayor was inside Gracie Mansion at the time of the protests.

In a statement, a spokesperson for Mamdani said “the ‘Crusade Against Islamization’ rally organized today in front of Gracie Mansion by Jake Lang, a vile white supremacist, was despicable and Islamophobic.” Fortunately, the Mayor and First Lady are both safe, although the events are a stark reminder of the threats they both regularly face. Gracie Manor.”

Mamdani released the following statement following the New York Police Department’s discovery that at least one device was an explosive:

Yesterday, white supremacist Jake Lang staged a protest outside Gracie Mansion rooted in bigotry and racism. Such hatred has no place in New York. It is an affront to the values ​​of our city and the unity that defines who we are.

What followed was even more disturbing. Violence during a demonstration is never acceptable. The attempt to use an explosive device and harm others is not only criminal, but reprehensible and contrary to who we are.

I want to thank the brave men and women of the New York Police Department who acted quickly to keep New Yorkers safe. Our officers ran into danger without hesitation, once again demonstrating the courage and dedication it takes to protect this city every day.

My administration is closely monitoring the situation and I remain in close contact with our police commissioner.

No other devices found

Police continued to search the area near Gracie Mansion for additional hazards, but Tisch said no other devices were found.

Tisch added that there was no indication the incident was linked to the war with Iran.

The New York Police Department said a total of six arrests were made during the protests, including Balat, Nikk and the suspect involved in the pepper spray incident. Three other arrests were made for public disorder and obstructing traffic.

The investigation is ongoing. The FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force in New York is also investigating.