(Headline USA) A man has been arrested on charges that he had explosive materials in his possession near a Washington, D.C., church that was preparing to celebrate an annual Mass marking the start of the U.S. Supreme Court’s term, according to police and court records.
Louis Geri, 41, was charged with possession of a destructive device after his arrest on Sunday outside St. Matthew’s Cathedral, court records show. Geri’s driver’s license if from New Jersey but had an Arizona address listed in charging papers.
Some Supreme Court justices usually attend the annual Red Mass. No justices went to this year’s celebration, a court spokesperson said.
Police officers were clearing the area near the Roman Catholic church before the ceremony when they saw Geri setting up a tent on steps leading into the church. Geri had been barred from the premises previously and was arrested when he refused to move his tent off church property, police said.
Geri told police that he had explosive devices and said, “You might want to stay back and call the federales,” according to a police report. Geri also was holding a butane lighter and had a bag containing vials of a yellow liquid, police said.
BREAKING: Suspect Louis Geri allegedly had 200 explosive devices in a green tent outside St. Matthew’s Cathedral in Washington, DC, on Sunday, where Supreme Court Justices were scheduled to attend the annual Red Mass. pic.twitter.com/Gug6AKVNGM
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In the tent, investigators found what appeared to be parts for making a “destructive device,” a court filing says. Geri allegedly had over 200 devices in his tent.
Geri “described his devices as grenades and explosives containing (nitromethane) with a rubber band securing a fuse to be used for detonation,” the filing says.
Police said they also found paperwork in Geri’s possession that expressed “significant animosity” toward the Roman Catholic church, Jewish people, Supreme Court “members” and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Geri is represented by an attorney from the Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia, court records show. The attorney and a spokesperson for that office didn’t immediately respond to messages seeking comment on the charges.
A D.C. Superior Court judge ordered Geri held without bond until a hearing on Thursday.
Adapted from reporting by the Associated Press
