4 people arrested for conspiring to bomb the enclave of a Muslim in New York

Four people were arrested Friday for their intention of bombing a Muslim community in northern New York State, authorities said Tuesday.

Investigators learned for the first time that they had heard of the plot after a student at the Greece Odyssey Academy in Greece in New York. made a casual remark during the lunch break, prompting another student to share it with school officials. Greek police chief Patrick Phelan said the authorities reacted quickly to the problem by conducting interviews and arrests on the same day.

The suspects reportedly planned to target the Muslim enclave of Islamberg, a small area located in the Catskill Mountains about 150 kilometers from New York. City, according to Reuters. The authorities then reported seizing 23 weapons and three improvised explosive devices while executing search warrants. All firearms were legally owned by the family of the arrested.

"If they had completed this conspiracy, and everything seems to indicate that they would go there, people would be dead," said Phelan. "I do not know how many and who, but people would be dead."

The suspects were identified as Brian Colaneri, 20, Andrew Crysel, 18, and Vincent Vetromile, 19. They were each charged with three counts of first degree possession of a dangerous weapon and a fourth degree charge of conspiracy. An unidentified 16-year-old student was also charged with the same crimes but will be tried as a minor.

Phelan said that school officials became suspicious as a result of a 16-year-old student's revelation of a photo on his phone. friends at the school cafeteria. The student would have commented on the effect: "He looks like the next school shooter, is not it?", Which gave rise to the complaint.

"The kid who said something saved the lives of people," said the head of the Greek police. "Everything worked and, therefore, no one died, and that's a good story."

It's unclear how the men and the student got to know each other, but the three men were scouts together, according to the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle.

Islamberg has already been targeted. In 2017, a man from Tennessee was sentenced to nearly 20 years in prison for planning the fire of a mosque and other buildings in the enclave.