NYPD Officer issues urgent ‘sleeper cell’ warning as ISIS-inspired teen bombers could face life sentence | 12 April 2026 | A veteran NYPD officer has warned that Americans in major cities should still be on high alert and prepared for “sleeper cells” to strike, one month after New York City narrowly avoided a disastrous terror attack. On Tuesday, the two ISIS[I-CIA-SIS]-inspired teens who threw homemade bombs during an anti-Islam protest were officially indicted on eight counts, including an attempt to use weapons of mass destruction and providing support to a terrorist organization. Ibrahim Kayumi and Emir Balat were arrested on March 7 after throwing a “Mother of Satan” explosive device in the direction of several police officers outside the mayor’s mansion in Manhattan. If convicted on the most serious counts, they could face life in prison. Retired Deputy Inspector Raymond Festino, a 30-year veteran of the New York City Police Department, worked on the front lines of countless emergencies and told the Daily Mail that copycats and other extremists were likely already in the U.S. and plotting similar crimes.