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More than 30 people were injured as a result of the detonation of a bomb that Rahimi hid inside a small dumpster on West 23rd Street.
By Michael V. Cusenza
Following a two-week trial, a Manhattan jury on Monday morning returned a guilty verdict against Ahmad Khan Rahami, the so-called Chelsea Bomber, in federal court on all eight counts of the indictment, which charged him with offenses related to his execution and attempted execution of bombings in NYC on Sept. 17, 2016.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, on that Saturday, Rahimi transported two improvised explosive devices from his home-base of New Jersey to Manhattan. He placed one of the devices in the vicinity of 135 West 23rd Street in Chelsea and the other a few blocks away on West 27th Street.
According to the evidence, at approximately 8:30 p.m., the 23rd Street IED – containing a high explosive main charge – detonated, causing injuries to over 30 people and multimillion-dollar property damage across a 650-foot crime scene. The injuries included, among other things, lacerations to the face, abdomen, legs, and arms caused by flying glass; metal shrapnel and fragmentation embedded in skin and bone; and various head injuries. The explosive components appear to have been placed inside a pressure cooker and left near a dumpster. The explosion propelled a more-than-one-hundred-pound dumpster more than 120 feet. The blast shattered windows as far as approximately 400 feet from the blast site and, vertically, more than three stories high.
According to prosecutors, shortly after the 23rd Street bomb detonated, the 27th Street IED was identified by a civilian who called 911. That bomb, which was rendered safe prior to detonation, consisted of, among other things, a pressure cooker connected with wires to a cell phone and packaged with an explosive main charge, ball bearings, and steel nuts.
Prosecutors noted that Rahimi also planted IEDs in two New Jersey neighborhoods. One detonated without resulting in injuries. The other was defused by law enforcement.
Rahimi was arrested on Sept. 19 in Linden, N.J., following a firefight with police during which he shot several cops before he was himself struck by gunfire and subdued.
“The Chelsea bombing was an attempt to bring our city to its knees. Instead, our NYPD, FBI and federal prosecutors have brought Ahmad Rahimi to justice. His evil was met with the bravery and resiliency of a beautiful neighborhood and an entire city,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio. “New York City will never be intimidated. We remain vigilant, resolute and safe. Congratulations to all those involved in this important prosecution.”
Police Commissioner Jim O’Neill added that Monday’s verdict “is the most forceful deterrent for anyone considering waging terror in our city. We will investigate; we will find those responsible; and justice will prevail.”
