A tense scene unfolded on the Upper East Side as the NYPD uncovered bomb-making materials inside a car on Sunday. This discovery came just a day after two extremists, inspired by ISIS, reportedly threw dangerous explosives during a protest near Gracie Mansion, as reported by authorities and insider sources.
The “suspicious device” was located inside a Hyundai parked on East End Avenue, between 81st and 82nd Streets. This find is linked to an ongoing investigation into the explosive devices that were hurled amidst a chaotic demonstration outside the mayor’s residence on Saturday, according to official statements and sources familiar with the case.
In response, officers cordoned off the street and evacuated nearby residences and businesses. The vehicle is believed to be connected to one of the suspects. Meanwhile, bomb squad experts were called in to carefully remove the device for further examination.
“NYPD officers have secured the area surrounding the vehicle and are carrying out limited evacuations of nearby buildings while the Bomb Squad evaluates and extracts the device,” the NYPD shared on X, formerly Twitter, on Sunday afternoon.
Within two hours, the bomb squad had successfully extracted the explosive materials, allowing residents to safely return to their homes, the department confirmed in a follow-up announcement.
Sources indicated that the suspicious items included an energy drink can wrapped in tape, concealing a highly volatile substance, underscoring the potential threat posed by the device.
The device is similar to the detonator used in the homemade IEDs allegedly thrown by self-radicalized ISIS terrorists Ibraham Kayumi, 19, and Emir Balat, 18, in a clash with agitators backing right-wing activist Jake Lang, sources added.
The botched explosive from Saturday’s protest consisted of sports drink bottles filled with triacetone triperoxide, or TATP, a substance favored by terrorists and known as “Mother of Satan” — which is so volatile that it typically doesn’t require a fuse to go off, according to sources.
The explosives fortunately failed to detonate during the clash between right-wing, Islamophobic demonstrators and pro-Muslim counter-protesters.
It is not immediately clear whether the paraphernalia found on Sunday has been positively identified as belonging to Kayumi or Balat.
An investigation remains ongoing, authorities said.
