2 Arrested After Lit Suspicious Devices Thrown Near Gracie Mansion, NYPD Says

NEW YORK CITY, NY — Six people were arrested Saturday during a pair of dueling protests outside Gracie Mansion, including a man who lit a pair of potentially explosive devices and threw one of them at police, New York Police Department Commissioner Jessica S. Tisch said.

The man, Amir Balat, 18, was arrested during the incident that happened about 12:30 p.m., Tisch said. A second man, Ibrahim Nick, 19, was arrested in connection with the devices, she said. He is accused of handing a second device to Balat as Balat ran down East End Avenue toward 86th Street, she said.

Tisch said there was no indication the actions were related to U.S. military actions in Iran, but the investigation was continuing.

The FBI said the Joint Terrorism Task Force and NYPD were working together on the investigation.

"While there is no threat to public safety, the FBI and the NYPD remain vigilant," the FBI said. "If you see something suspicious, notify local authorities or call 1-800-CALL-FBI."

The incident happened as tensions escalated between protesters taking part in an anti-Islam demonstration led by conservative influencer Jake Lang that drew about 20 people, and a counterprotest that drew about 125 people, in the area of East End Avenue and 87th Street, Tisch said.

Gracie Mansion is the official residence of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani. Tisch said she had been in touch with Mamdani but it was not clear if he and his wife were home at the time.

The first clash between the two groups happened when one of the anti-Islam protesters sprayed counterprotesters with pepper spray, Tisch said. That person was arrested, but Tisch did not release the person's name.

Some time later as tensions worsened, Balat pulled out the device, which Tisch described as a jar wrapped in black tape with nuts, bolts and screws and a hobby fuse that could be lit, about the sie of a football. Balat lit the fuse and threw the item toward protesters but it hit a police barricade and extinguished itself, she said.

Balat then took off running down East End Avenue and Nick handed him a second device that Balat lit, then dropped between 87th and 86th streets, Tisch said. He was chased and apprehended, she said.

The devices were taken to a lab to determine whether they contained material to make them explode or if they were hoax devices, Tisch said.

Law enforcement conducted sweeps in the area searching for any other potential devices, she said.

Three other people were arrested on charges of disorderly conduct and disrupting traffic, she said.

Saturday's protests took place during the holy month of Ramadan, observed by Muslims around the world. Mamdani is New York City's first Muslim mayor.

The New York Daily News reported that pro- and anti-Muslim demonstrators openly shoved and kicked each other during Saturday's protest, which began with Lang holding a pig roast at a cafe on East 88th Street and York Avenue in Manhattan, an apparent jab at practicing Muslims who aren't allowed to eat pork.

Lang, a Florida man who was pardoned by President Donald Trump for charges tied to the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, has held similar rallies in recent weeks, according to reports.

Lang was drowned out by a large crowd last month when he attempted to hold a small rally in Minneapolis in support of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown. Lang was previously charged with assaulting an officer and other crimes before receiving clemency as part of President Donald Trump’s sweeping intervention on behalf of Jan. 6 defendants last year.

While in Minnesota, he was jailed and charged with a felony count of damage to property after he posted a video of himself on social media kicking down an anti-ICE sculpture outside the state capitol building in St. Paul.

The Associated Press contributed reporting.