Residue Found On Bucks Co. Detonated Devices Linked To NYC Terror Plot: FBI

MIDDLETOWN TOWNSHIP, PA — Federal authorities said that explosives detonated at a Langhorne storage facility on Monday night had the same residue on the devices used in the New York City terror plot over the weekend.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation said residue from the explosives was linked to the devices thrown at Gracie Mansion in an incident involving two Bucks County teenagers.

The FBI descended on a public storage facility on South Flowers Mill Road in Langhorne on Monday night in a raid to gather evidence linked to 18-year-old Emir Balat of Middletown Township and 19-year-old Ibrahim Kayumi of Newtown Township, authorities said.

The two were charged in a federal criminal complaint on Monday for their involvement in an "ISIS-inspired" terrorism plot against protesters outside Gracie Mansion on Saturday.

The two suspects wanted to carry out an attack "bigger than the Boston Marathon attack," Balet told authorities, the criminal complaint states, when asked if he was familiar with that terrorism plot. "No, even bigger. That was only three deaths."

The FBI executed a search warrant at the facility, collecting evidence. Monday's operation involved tactical teams, evidence response personnel, and support from local police and emergency services, the FBI New York reported.

U.S. Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick said that explosive materials recovered through the execution of federal search warrants were safely neutralized by FBI bomb technicians through controlled detonations.

"These were planned safety procedures carried out by trained personnel, and at no point was the public in danger," Fitzpatrick said.

He said that both suspects remain in federal custody on terrorism charges.

"What occurred in New York was an act of terrorism. Targeting members of the public—and the police officers protecting them—with explosives is an attack on the rule of law and the basic safety that allows Americans to gather, speak, and live freely," Fitzpatrick said. "That conduct stands in direct opposition to the values of our community, and those responsible must be held fully accountable under the law. Terror seeks to divide and intimidate. It will not succeed here. Bucks County—and our great nation—are defined by respect for the rule of law, by neighbors of different backgrounds and views who stand together, and by a shared commitment to peace, respect, and safety for all. Those values are stronger than hatred, and they will always prevail."

The two suspects were charged on Monday with five federal counts, including providing material support to a designated foreign terrorist group, use of a weapon of mass destruction, transportation of explosive materials, Interstate transportation, and receipt of explosives and unlawful possession of destructive devices.

Federal investigators allege the two teenagers attempted to detonate IEDs in the area of East End Avenue and East 88th Street in Manhattan around 2:15 p.m. Saturday, the complaint reads.Federal investigators allege the two teenagers attempted to detonate IEDs in the area of East End Avenue and East 88th Street in Manhattan around 2:15 p.m. Saturday, the complaint reads.