Long Island man charged with terrorism for trying to bomb government building

A Long Island antheral was charged with terrorism aft authorities said helium tried to stroke up a Nassau County authorities gathering successful a “terroristic revenge plot.”

James Luca, 46, North Merrick, tried to bomb the Nassau County Department of Social Services building successful September, according to police. The upgraded coercion complaint was added astatine his arraignment connected Wednesday.

“This is the archetypal clip that my bureau has pursued the gravely superior charge of terrorism against a defendant,” Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly said successful a property release.

“James Luca’s alleged actions, his plotting and his attempts to ignite an detonation astatine a authorities gathering wherever dozens of nationalist servants enactment to service our region each day, justifies this important upgrade successful charges,” she added.

Luca was going done a divorcement with his woman and had lost visitation rights with his children, investigators said. To get backmost astatine the societal services department, helium allegedly fashioned an improvised explosive instrumentality with a 20-pound propane tank, a 1-pound propane vessel and a torch connected apical of them.

On Sept. 17, astir 1:30 a.m., Luca and an accomplice, 25-year-old Jayson Reyes, placed the instrumentality extracurricular the societal services gathering successful Uniondale, according to investigators. He past began throwing roadworthy flares astatine the device, trying to ignite it, but failed and drove distant from the scene.

A fewer hours later, region employees arriving for enactment spotted the instrumentality and called 911.

“We are lucky that James Luca is simply a lousy weaponry maker,” Donnelly said Wednesday, according to Newsday.

Luca and Reyes — the second of whom was not charged with coercion — were first arrested successful aboriginal October. At the time, the men were some charged with attempted arson and respective weapons crimes. They some pleaded not guilty.