Area residents were evacuated when detectives and a SWAT team found a possible homemade explosive and safely detonated the device, which may or may not have been active, around 6pm. Celli was arrested and booked into county jail the same day, according to the Times.
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Celli has frequently posted on his Facebook that he is a Trump supporter, claiming he will follow “this man to the end of the world”.
The entire ordeal stemmed from a Thursday tip to police that the suspect had expressed “his intent to harm the Muslim community in the City of Richmond”, Tan said.
Richmond police Capt Mark Gagan said: ‘His actions and words were so concerning they were photographing him in his auto.
Police said Monday that it was the discovery of the bomb photo that accelerated their probe and led to Celli’s arrest Sunday on suspicion of making death threats against Muslims, with a hate crime enhancement, and possessing a pipe bomb.
A man present during the threats, Abdur Rahman, told the Guardian that Celli was screaming, “I’m going to kill you all”, while standing in a Burger King parking lot across the street from the mosque.
“Donald Trump’s on again I’m feeling good about myself”, he posted October 28. “I have lost 30% of my business to Hispanics coming to my country under false pretenses and freeload in construction or in the blue collar sector they need to go back home let’s not talk about the welfare they suck dry”, Celli posted on June 2014.
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The Council on American-Islamic Relations was quick to classify Celli’s alleged plans as domestic terrorism, noting that the group is concerned with what it sees as heightened violent views toward Muslims as a result of “Islamophobic political rhetoric”.
