Two brothers, 39-year-old Andrew Hatziagelis and 51-year-old Angelo Hatziagelis, have been arrested in New York City after police discovered a cache of homemade explosives, a hit list, and an arsenal of ghost guns in their shared apartment. The Queens District Attorney, Melinda Katz, announced that the brothers have been indicted on 130 counts of criminal possession of a weapon and related charges. The discovery included improvised explosive devices (IEDs), assault rifles, and ghost guns, along with instructions for making various bombs and a hit list with names of “cops, judges, politicians, celebrities,” and “banker scum.”
The Hatziagelis brothers shared the Astoria apartment with their mother and another brother. The search of their home revealed alarming materials, including anarchist propaganda. The indictment comprises various charges, such as criminal possession of a weapon, reckless endangerment, criminal sale of a firearm, and unlawful possession of ammunition, among others. If convicted, each brother could face up to 25 years in prison.
The seized items included eight operational IEDs, one partially constructed trip-wire IED, loaded AR-15 style ghost gun assault weapons, loaded 9 mm semiautomatic ghost gun pistols, a partially constructed AK-47 style ghost gun, over 600 rounds of ammunition, a 3D printer, three sets of body armor, and manuals on how to build explosive devices. The discovery was made possible through collaboration among law enforcement agencies, including the NYPD, Homeland Security, ATF, and the New York State Police.
The Queens District Attorney emphasized the potential harm averted by the discovery, stating that the cache of weapons, explosives, and untraceable ghost guns had the potential to cause “horrendous carnage.” The Hatziagelis brothers are scheduled for arraignment on February 15, and the investigation involved Homeland Security Investigations, contributing to the resolution of a potentially dangerous situation.