NEW YORK (AP) — Two men who brought explosives to a protest outside New York City's mayoral mansion said they were inspired by the Islamic State extremist group, a court complaint said.
Emir Balat and Ibrahim Kayumi were being held without bail after their arraignment Monday on charges that include attempting to provide material support to a terrorist organization and using a weapon of mass destruction. Their lawyers didn't argue for bail but could do so later.
The homemade devices, which did not explode, were hurled Saturday during raucous counterprotests against an anti-Islamic demonstration led by Jake Lang, a far-right activist and critic of New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, a Democrat and the first Muslim to hold the office.
The men said nothing during the brief proceeding, but Kayumi smirked and looked over at Balat as the judge read part of the complaint that said that they were acting in support of the Islamic State group. Balat stared ahead at the defense table.
According to the complaint, Kayumi blurted out, as he was being arrested Saturday, that “ISIS” was the reason for his conduct. Balat, 18, later told authorities that he had pledged allegiance to the extremist group, and Kayumi, 19, asserted that he was affiliated with the Islamic State group, the complaint said.
Officers asked Balat whether he was aiming to accomplish something akin to the bombing of the Boston Marathon in 2013, when two pressure-cooker bombs exploded near the finish line, killing three people and wounding hundreds more.
“No, even bigger,” Balat replied, according to the complaint.
Attorney General highlights the case
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi commented on social media that authorities “will not allow ISIS’s poisonous, anti-American ideology to threaten this nation.”
In court, Kayumi’s lawyer, Michael Arthus, pointed to the extensive publicity surrounding the case and asked that prosecutors avoid saying anything that could prejudice potential jurors.
Source: WPLG
