Razor blades and white powder attached to political signs lead to more charges for suspect in Arizona DNC office shootings

(CNN) — Arizona investigators surveilling the man accused of shooting at the Democratic National Committee office in a suburb of Phoenix saw him posting political signs with bags of a white, powdery substance attached, officials said.

Investigators in Tempe began surveilling Jeffrey Michael Kelly, 60, as a suspect in three separate shootings of the DNC office after receiving tips from the public, Tempe Police Chief Kenneth McCoy said at a news conference Wednesday.

They watched Kelly placing the signs with the bags attached from late Monday into Tuesday morning, the chief said.

Kelly was arrested Tuesday on three felony counts of acts of terrorism and seven other counts related to the shootings, court records show. The state added three additional felony counts of making false terrorism reports Wednesday night, bringing the total number of counts to 13.

“It’s the state’s belief that Mr. Kelly poses the most extreme danger within a democracy and within our community,” prosecutor George Kelemen said. “Trying to disrupt political activity, aiming violence at a political party, is completely, completely out of bounds.”

In addition to the bags of powder, Keleman said the signs placed by Kelly had utility knife blades attached to the edges. It was not immediately known what the powdery substance was.

With the additional felony charges, a judge doubled Kelly’s bond to $1 million cash, an amount his attorney argued was completely out of reach.

“Five hundred thousand dollars might as well be $5 billion” for Kelly, defense attorney Jason Squires told the judge. Maricopa County Jail records showed Kelly was still incarcerated as of Thursday night.

Kelly was not asked to enter a plea at Wednesday’s hearings. CNN reached out to the prosecutor’s office and Squires for further comment Thursday.

Arizona is among the crucial battleground states in the upcoming election, where the rivalry between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump has intensified. The campaign season has already been marred by violence, including the alleged assassination attempts targeting Trump during a Pennsylvania rally and at his Florida golf course.

Three shooting incidents

Kelly is accused of shooting at the DNC office in Tempe on three occasions.

First, on September 16, just after midnight, Kelly fired more than 10 shots from a BB gun into the front doors and windows of the building, McCoy said.

A week later, on September 23, around the same time, about six shots were fired at the building, damaging the front windows and office signs, the chief said.

“This time the situation escalated to the use of real bullets,” McCoy said.

Surveillance video from the second incident showed a silver Toyota SUV leaving the parking lot shortly after the shots were fired.

Two weeks later, on October 6, shortly after midnight, a glass break alarm was triggered and responding officers found three bullet strikes in the front of the building, McCoy said.

The same silver SUV was seen in surveillance video, the chief said.

“Threats, intimidation or violence toward political officials, no matter what party they are a part of, are completely unacceptable,” Mitchell said. “These actions create fear, and they weaken the trust in our elections, and frankly, they weaken our system of democracy.”

“Our department recognizes the significance of this arrest, and we want to reassure our community that when you go to vote over the next 13 days, we are committed to keeping you safe,” McCoy said, denouncing political violence.

Officials believe weapons stockpile points to ‘potential mass casualty event’

More than 120 guns and more than 250,000 rounds of ammunition were found at Kelly’s home following his arrest, prosecutors said at Kelly’s initial court appearance Wednesday.

Investigators believe he may have been planning a mass casualty event, prosecutors said.

“Obviously … those numbers of guns as well as those numbers of rounds are certainly a factor that you would consider,” Mitchell said at the news conference.

Defense attorney Jason Squires strongly disputed the claim that Kelly was found to be in possession of a grenade launcher during a search of his home. “He had a flare gun,” Squires said, stating Kelly is a sportsman who used it “in different competitive events.”

Kelly was under suspicion for the 2022 theft of political signs, but, “I don’t believe charges were filed against him at that time,” McCoy said.

A review of Kelly’s Facebook posts found a large number of posts and memes criticizing liberals and Democrats, showing support for former President Trump, and pro-gun and military content dating back to 2012. There are no public posts on his page after August 2023.

“We’re continuing our investigation to see if we can learn if there were any additional things he planned on doing,” McCoy said.

Squires told the judge Wednesday evening that his client is a “retired aerospace engineer” with a master’s degree and a top secret government clearance. He did not provide further details on the nature of his job that required special clearance.

“There was no evidence at all that he was on his way to commit mayhem, destruction and death,” Squires said.

The Arizona Democratic Party remains “undeterred and continue the work of ensuring voters in the East Valley turn out in full force now through Election Day,” a spokesperson for the group said.

CNN’s David Williams and Chimaine Pouteau contributed to this report.

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