A homemade bomb thrown at a protest outside the mayor of New York City’s home has been verified as a viable device that could have killed or maimed dozens.
Emir Balat and Ibrahim Kayumi were arrested yesterday and are in custody in connection with the discovery on Saturday.
Two bombs were wrapped in tape and appeared to be jars stuffed with screws and a hobby fuse, investigators said, before confirming that at least one of them was an IED.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani was inside his official Upper East Side home at the time of the protest, but neither him or his wife Rama Duwaji were harmed.
He said: ‘Yesterday, white supremacist Jake Lang organised a protest outside Gracie Mansion rooted in bigotry and racism. Such hate has no place in New York City.
‘It is an affront to our city’s values and the unity that defines who we are. What followed was even more disturbing. Violence at a protest is never acceptable.
‘The attempt to use an explosive device and hurt others is not only criminal, it is reprehensible and the antithesis of who we are.
‘I want to thank the brave men and women of the NYPD who acted quickly to keep New Yorkers safe.
‘Our officers ran toward danger without hesitation, demonstrating once again the courage and dedication it takes to protect this city every single day. My administration is closely monitoring the situation and I remain in close contact with our Police Commissioner.’
Police Commissioner of the City of New York Jessica Tisch confirmed the device was viable.
She wrote: ‘The NYPD Bomb Squad has conducted a preliminary analysis of a device that was ignited and deployed at a protest yesterday and has determined that it is not a hoax device or a smoke bomb.
‘It is, in fact, an improvised explosive device that could have caused serious injury or death.
‘Further analysis will be conducted, including on a second device.’
She added: ‘I want to again thank the brave members of the NYPD who ran towards the danger without hesitation and quickly apprehended the suspects.’
Lang’s followers cooked a whole pig and brought it to Mamdani’s home during Ramadan.
Six people were arrested at the anti-Islam protest organised by far-right activist Jake Lang and held outside Mamdani’s official residence on Saturday.
Two arrests were due to the throwing of suspicious devices, one for the deployment of pepper spray, and three others for disorderly conduct.
‘Thankfully, the Mayor and the First Lady are both safe, though the events are a stark reminder of the threats they both face regularly,’ a spokesperson for the mayor said.
The device struck a barrier and extinguished itself ‘a few feet from police officers,’ she said.
The same person then ran, and another person gave him a second device, which he then dropped.
The devices, which Tisch said were smaller than a football, were wrapped in black tape with nuts, bolts, and screws, as well as a hobby fuse that could be lit.
Police are investigating the incident that started late Saturday morning when someone from the anti-Islam protest associated with conservative influencer Jake Lang shot pepper spray into a counterprotesting group near the mayoral residence.
Lang was previously charged with assaulting an officer with a baseball bat, civil disorder and other crimes before receiving clemency as part of President Donald Trump’s sweeping act of clemency for January 6 defendants last year.
Tisch said about 20 people showed up to the protest tied to him on Saturday, and the counterprotest had about 125 people at its peak.
Jake Lang posted on X, shortly after, claiming to have been he target. He said: ‘I just survived an assassination attempt by these two Muslim men; ‘The homemade bomb they threw landed 3 feet in front of me.
‘The detonator failed to ignite, because God is on the throne of my life. We will never surrender to Islam.’
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