What we know about the 2 terror suspects accused of tossing makeshift bombs near the NYC mayor’s home

(CNN) — Investigators are digging deeper into the backgrounds of two terror suspects accused of tossing makeshift bombs at a protest outside the New York City mayor’s home in what authorities describe as an ISIS-inspired attack over the weekend.

Emir Balat, 18, and Ibrahim Kayumi, 19, who law enforcement officials said are both US citizens from Pennsylvania, are accused of trying to use improvised explosive devices at an anti-Islam demonstration and a counterprotest near Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s home Saturday. No device exploded.

When speaking to investigators, both suspects cited ISIS, a terrorist group that has seen a resurgence in recent years, according to a criminal complaint filed in federal court Monday.

The two are charged with providing material support to a terrorist organization; use of a weapon of mass destruction; transportation of explosive materials; unlawful possession of destructive devices; and interstate transportation and receipt of explosives.

“This was a planned attack motivated by extremist ideology and inspired by a violent foreign terrorist organization,” New York Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said Monday.

The incident happened during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan as anti-Islam protesters and counterprotesters squared off near Gracie Mansion, the official mayoral home in New York City. Mamdani is the city’s first Muslim mayor.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt called the attack “absolutely despicable” in remarks Tuesday.

Leavitt cited an FBI investigation into the attack and charges brought against the two suspects by the Department of Justice and the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, saying: “I know they won’t rest until justice is sought in this case.”

As authorities probe the suspects’ possible ties to ISIS, here’s what we know about the investigation:

How authorities say the attack unfolded

An anti-Islam protest organized by right-wing influencer Jake Lang attracted about 20 people on Saturday. It was soon dwarfed by a counterprotest called “Drive the Nazis Out of New York,” which peaked at about 125 participants, Tisch said.

The groups stayed in designated areas, but tensions escalated when a protester from Lang’s group pepper-sprayed counterprotesters around 12:15 p.m., the police commissioner said.

Twenty minutes later, Balat “threw an ignited device toward the protest area,” which landed on a crosswalk, Tisch said. Video showed protesters and police quickly scatter to avoid the device.

“Witnesses reported seeing flames and smoke as it traveled through the air before it struck a barrier and extinguished itself a few feet from police officers,” the commissioner said.

Balat then retrieved a second device from Kayumi before lighting it and starting to run, the complaint said. He dropped the second device on the street where several police officers were standing, and he ran, according to the complaint. The device appeared to emit smoke but also did not explode, according to Tisch.

Police officers soon tackled and arrested Balat, and Kayumi also was arrested at the scene, the complaint said.

The anti-Islam protester accused of using pepper spray was also arrested, and three others were arrested on suspicion of disorderly conduct and obstructing traffic Tisch said.

Mamdani said he and his wife, Rama Duwaji, were not home during the time of the protest.

Suspects are a high school senior and another teen from Pennsylvania

Balat and Kayumi are both from Pennsylvania, authorities said. Balat is a 12th-grade student at Neshaminy School District, a district spokesperson told CNN.

They both independently told investigators they were inspired by ISIS, authorities said.

As Kayumi was being placed into an NYPD vehicle, an officer’s body-worn camera captured someone asking why he had done this. The 19-year-old responded with “ISIS,” the complaint said.

After waiving his Miranda rights, Kayumi also told authorities he watched ISIS propaganda on his phone, and his actions were partly inspired by the terrorist group, according to the complaint.

When Balat was placed in a separate police car, he made statements without being questioned, Tisch said. An officer’s body-worn camera captured him saying, “This isn’t a religion that just stands when people talk about the blessed name of the Prophet. We take action … If I didn’t do it someone else will come and do it,” according to the complaint.

When he arrived at the precinct, Balat also waived his Miranda rights and requested a piece of paper, where he wrote that he pledged his allegiance to the Islamic State and “Die in your rage yu (sic) kuffar!” the complaint said. “Kuffar” is an Arabic term that refers to “non-believers” or “infidels,” an FBI agent wrote in the complaint.

An officer asked Balat if he knew about the Boston Marathon bombings and if that was what he wanted to accomplish, the complaint said. Balat responded: “No, even bigger. It was only three deaths,” the court document states.

Neither of the men had prior criminal histories, Tisch said.

The suspects were not previously known to federal authorities, a law enforcement official briefed on the case told CNN.

Investigators still are trying to determine whether the pair had any level of training or engagement with ISIS, but one of the materials used to make the IED – a mason jar – points to a lack of sophisticated training, the official added.

Balat’s attorney, Mehdi Essmidi, told CNN he’s “still trying to figure out” how his client “even came to be in New York to be involved in this.”

There’s no indication Balat had a relationship with Kayumi prior to Saturday’s incident, as the pair didn’t have prior school, family or work ties, Essmidi said.

Balat, a US citizen, turned 18 two months ago and lives at home with his parents in Langhorne, Pennsylvania, a small suburb about an hour north of Philadelphia, his attorney said.

“I know the family was very surprised by what happened,” Essmidi said. He said a search warrant was executed at Balat’s home, and the family has been cooperating with law enforcement.

Kayumi’s attorney, Michael Arthus, declined to comment to CNN.

Both suspects were remanded to federal custody and are being held without bail after the initial court appearance Monday. They are scheduled to appear in court on April 8.

Makeshift bombs contained nuts and bolts, authorities say

The two devices recovered from Saturday’s protest were “each approximately the size of a mason jar” and each had an attached fuse, the complaint said. They also had nuts and bolts attached to the exterior, with everything surrounded by duct tape, according to the complaint.

The device thrown into the crowd of protesters tested positive for an explosive substance called TATP, also known as the “Mother of Satan,” court documents said. The second device is still being analyzed.

Bomb technicians from the NYPD and FBI performed controlled detonations of the two IEDs, which resulted in a “significant explosion,” said Rebecca Weiner, NYPD’s deputy commissioner of intelligence and counterterrorism.

“It’s really important to note that had these IEDs functioned the way the perpetrators allegedly wanted them to, they could have caused death, destruction,” she said.

A third device found Sunday is being investigated “in connection with” Saturday’s incident, NYPD said. That device tested negative for explosive material, Tisch said.

After Balat was arrested Saturday, authorities found a car several blocks away from Gracie Mansion that was registered to Balat’s family member and was captured moving across the George Washington Bridge into New York City at 11:36 a.m., the complaint said.

Police found in the car “a coiled green material consistent in appearance with hobby fuse,” an empty metal can similar to one found in one of the devices, and a notebook that said “TATP explosive” and listed chemical ingredients, the complaint said.

Surveillance video shows Balat shopping at a firework store in Pennsylvania days before the incident, according to Phantom Fireworks. Bill Weimer, the company vice president and general counsel, told CNN the video appears to show Balat signaling for an employee, who under state law are required to scan a customer’s identification to prove they are over 18.

Balat purchased a 20-foot consumer firework safety fuse for $6.89 on March 2, Weimer said. He was then seen in the footage checking out and exiting the store.

“We sell consumer fireworks only, used in the backyards,” Weimer said, so it would have been the “wrong materials” for creating an explosive device, he added.

Weimer described the purchase as “a totally unremarkable sale.”

“Somebody comes in and buys one role of a fuse like this fella did, nobody there would have thought anything of it,” Weimer said, adding he’s not sure whether the salesperson remembers making the sale.

Following news of the incident and learning the suspects’ names, Weimer said the company checked its records to see if either of the suspects had shopped there before. The company contacted the FBI, which then sent a subpoena asking for the sales record and video footage, he added.

Authorities say they’ve found more explosives in a storage facility

As the investigation expanded to the suspects’ home state, authorities discovered explosives at a storage facility in Pennsylvania’s Bucks County, local authorities told CNN on Tuesday.

Investigators’ current theory is the suspects used the facility to build explosive devices, according to a law enforcement official briefed on the matter.

The FBI “safely disposed of explosive materials” found, Middleton Township police said. The township is in Bucks County, where both suspects are from.

While the controlled detonations caused “several loud bangs” that may have been startling, “there was no danger to the public at any time,” police said. Before township police released details about the detonations, the FBI had said Monday night it was searching the storage facility in connection with the New York City case.

Mamdani denounces violence

The mayor, who has received verbal attacks for his religion, defended his faith and denounced any form of violence.

“Extremism and hatred of any kind will not be tolerated in our city, and that is regardless of whatever ideology motivates any person to commit an act of violence,” Mamdani said at a news conference Tuesday.

“No matter the attempts, I will never be ashamed of who I am. I’ll never be ashamed of my faith. I’ll never be ashamed of the things that make me me,” the mayor said.

“We want to have a city where no one feels as if they have to fit themselves into a box in order to be able to live in the place they call home.”

More than an hour after Mamdani spoke Tuesday, police investigated a suspicious package near Gracie Mansion. It was not immediately clear whether the package — later determined by police to be non-threatening — was linked to devices found over the weekend and the subsequent terror investigation.

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CNN’s Hanna Park, Danny E. Freeman, Brynn Gingras, Jason Hanna, Sara Smart, John Miller, Karina Tsui, Cindy Von Quednow, Sharif Paget, Samantha Waldenberg, Taylor Galgano and Katherine Koretski contributed to this report.