Gracie Mansion homemade bomb incident investigated as 'ISIS-inspired terrorism,' NYPD commissioner says
NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch and Mayor Zohran Mamdani hold a news conference outside Gracie Mansion on Monday. Credit: AP/Angelina Katsanis
The counterprotester accused of hurling a homemade bomb during a clash with anti-Islam protesters near Gracie Mansion on Saturday, and a second suspect, are facing federal charges in a case that's being investigated as "ISIS-inspired terrorism," NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said Monday.
Tisch has identified the suspects as Emir Balat, 18, and Ibrahim Kayumi, 19.
Citing the pending prosecution, Tisch declined to say why the case is believed to be terrorism inspired by ISIS.
Tisch and her boss, Mayor Zohran Mamdani, spoke at Gracie Mansion on Monday morning, standing with the two NYPD officers who ran toward the bomb as it was hurled.
A second device had been recovered at the scene, according to police. On Sunday, police investigated another "suspicious device" in a car parked several blocks from the incident on the Upper East Side.
Check back for updates on this developing story.
Matthew Chayes, a Newsday reporter since 2007, covers New York City.
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