Man facing federal charges in alleged homemade bomb plot in New York City
NEW YORK (WABC) -- Police released new details Wednesday on the arrest of an alleged bombmaker in New York City who prosecutors say put countless lives at risk.
Michael Gann, 55, grew up in a Long Island neighborhood and those who knew him say he was troubled and homeless at times.
The suspect is awaiting arraignment on federal charges after investigators say he built at least seven homemade explosives and placed them across the city.
Law enforcement received a tip after the suspect allegedly ordered materials for the bombs online and had them delivered to an address in Nassau County.
An arrest in SoHo last month led the FBI and police to five undetonated homemade IED bombs that were placed on neighboring residential rooftops in the same New York City neighborhood.
Another bomb was found thrown on the subway tracks of the Williamsburg Bridge.
"Six-hundred times the explosive power of a firecracker in some of these devices, small, incredibly powerful and clear from his internet search that he was interested in creating flash powder and looked at chlorine bombs," said NYPD Deputy Commissioner of Intelligence and Counterterrorism Rebecca Weiner.
Federal prosecutors say the culprit is Gann, who is from Inwood, Long Island.
Eyewitness News spoke exclusively with a man who did not want to be identified but said he grew up with Gann's mother.
"He was crazy, I tried to help him as much as I could but he was a lost cause," the man said.
He said he watched Gann grow up and let Gann use his Inwood home address to receive mail until a few weeks ago.
"The last time I saw him is when I chased him off my property, when he had that package that was delivered here, and I found out what he had, I told him to take it and get away from here," the man said.
He said what was inside the package is what gave him pause and prompted his tenant to call police.
"He had a powder and then some kind of oxidizer, I really didn't know what it was until he told me it was that it was an explosive," the man said.
Prosecutors say Gann assembled at least seven IEDs using chemicals, cardboard tubes and fuses ordered online before placing five of them on the SoHo rooftops.
On Wednesday a grand jury indicted Gann on three counts, including attempted destruction of property by means of explosives and unlawful possession of destructive devices.
The man who knew Gann said he wasn't surprised by the allegations.
"He always got involved in things, you know, like he shot himself once, he had a rifle, I don't know how he got a hold of a rifle, he kept it in his pants and he went to take it out and it went off and he shot his foot," the man said.
Prosecutors also say Gann posted an encrypted message on Instagram that read, "Who wants me to go out to play like no tomorrow?"
Although no one was hurt, the motive behind the potentially foiled plan is still not clear.
Eyewitness News has reached out to Gann's attorney but has not yet heard back.
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