Man indicted for possessing pipe bomb, attacking cousin with machete: Manhattan DA

NEW YORK (1010 WINS) – A man was indicted on Wednesday for possessing and threatening his cousin with a fully operable pipe-bomb and striking him in the head with a machete in July, prosecutors said.

Chontrell Wrenick, 50, was charged in an indictment with criminal possession of a weapon. He is also charged with one count of assault, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said.

According to court documents, on July 24, Wrenick’s cousin drove to his apartment building in East Harlem to pick him up. When Wrenick’s cousin arrived, Wrenick entered the car on the front passenger side, carrying a camouflage tote bag.

A few minutes later, as they drove southbound on Lexington Avenue, Wrenick allegedly pulled out a pipe-bomb from the tote bag and threatened to ignite it in the car, according to prosecutors.

He then allegedly placed the bomb to the side and grabbed and squeezed his cousin’s shirt collar. While gripping his cousin’s shirt collar, he removed a machete from the tote bag and used it to hit his cousin in the back of the head, injuring him, prosecutors said.

Wrenick’s cousin then parked at a police station and alerted police officers, who were stationed outside. Officers recovered a pipe-bomb from the floor of the backseat of the car and a tote bag, which contained a 16-inch machete and a knife. He was arrested.

Pursuant to a court-authorized search warrant executed at Wrenick’s apartment, officers found bomb making materials, such as fuses and powder residue.

“As alleged, Chontrell Wrenick committed an alarming and dangerous attack that jeopardized the safety of his own cousin,” Bragg said. “The explosive device posed a significant threat to the lives of innocent Manhattanites, and I am grateful law enforcement was able to intervene and safely recover the device. I wish the victim a speedy recovery.”