JUST IN: NYPD Says Explosive Devices at Gracie Mansion Protest Were ‘ISIS-Inspired’

New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said Monday that the improvised explosive devices deployed during a chaotic protest outside Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s residence over the weekend are being investigated as an “ISIS-inspired” act of terrorism.

Speaking alongside Mamdani outside City Hall, Tisch confirmed the suspects arrested in connection with the incident will face prosecution in federal court in Manhattan. She said a criminal complaint detailing the charges and evidence was expected to be made public later Monday.

“We aren’t at liberty to discuss many aspects of the ongoing investigation at this time due to the pending prosecution,” Tisch said. “But I can confirm this morning that this is being investigated as an act of ISIS-inspired terrorism.”

The incident unfolded Saturday near Gracie Mansion on Manhattan’s Upper East Side during a confrontation between far-right protesters and a much larger group of counterprotesters.

According to police, two explosive devices were ignited during the clash, one in a crosswalk at East End Avenue and East 87th Street and another nearby between East 86th and East 87th Streets.

Initial analysis by the NYPD bomb squad and FBI specialists determined the devices were not smoke bombs or hoax devices but functioning improvised explosive devices capable of causing serious injury or death.

Further forensic testing revealed that at least one of the devices contained triacetone triperoxide, or TATP, a highly volatile homemade explosive that has been used in terrorist attacks around the world.

“Our analysis showed that one of the devices contained the substance triacetone triperoxide, known as TATP,” Tisch said.

Bomb technicians were able to render both devices safe before they detonated. No injuries were reported.

Investigators later traced the suspects to a black 2010 Honda with New Jersey license plates parked on East End Avenue. Using a bomb squad robot, officers discovered materials inside the vehicle consistent with the earlier devices, as well as a third suspicious object.

Police evacuated portions of nearby buildings while the bomb squad secured the scene and transported the device for testing. Tisch said the third device ultimately tested negative for explosive material.

Tisch emphasized the seriousness of the incident, noting the last time an improvised explosive device targeting people was deployed in New York City was in 2017, when a would-be attacker detonated a pipe bomb in a subway passage near the Port Authority Bus Terminal.

“We were fortunate that the devices used this weekend did not cause the kind of harm they were capable of causing,” she said. “But luck is never a strategy.”

The police commissioner also praised officers who rushed toward the devices after they were ignited during the crowded protest, highlighting the actions of Assistant Chief Aaron Edwards and Sergeant Louis Nafshair.

“Officers did not step back,” Tisch said. “They stepped forward.”

This is the second terrorist attack to gain national news since the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran just over a week ago, the first being a mass shooting in Austin. Texas.

Watch above via Fox News.

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