The authorities said they believed the suspect was “preparing to commit an act of mass casualty.”
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Bullet holes remain in the glass window at a Democratic Party campaign office in Tempe, Ariz., last month.
An Arizona man has been arrested on terrorism charges in connection with three shootings at a Democratic Party campaign office in suburban Phoenix that wounded none but rattled campaign workers in a bitter election season.
The man, Jeffrey Michael Kelly, 60, was arrested Tuesday, according to the authorities. Mr. Kelly also set out anti-Democratic Party signs lined with razor blades near his home, attaching bags filled with an unknown white powder and labeled “Biohazard,” according to court papers.
The shootings at the Democratic Party’s campaign office in Tempe, Ariz., started in mid-September and all took place between midnight and 1 a.m., according to the police. After the third shooting, on Oct. 6, the Arizona Democratic Party closed the office.
More than 120 guns, 250,000 rounds of ammunition and a grenade launcher were uncovered at Mr. Kelly’s home, a lawyer for the Maricopa County attorney’s office, Neha Bhatia, said at a virtual court appearance on Wednesday. Some of the firearms were machine guns, she said, adding that the authorities believed he was “preparing to commit an act of mass casualty.”
She warned that he could pose a threat to Democratic political figures if he does not remain in custody. His Facebook page was full of anti-Democratic Party posts, according to court papers.
In the first shooting on Sept. 16, the Democratic Party office was struck about 13 times by BB gun pellets, shattering the building’s glass front door, according to court papers. On Sept. 23, and again on Oct. 6, the office was struck by gunfire, further damaging the building, the court papers said.
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Source: nytimes.com
