Man charged with having explosive materials near DC church hosting annual Red Mass celebration

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WASHINGTON (AP) — A New Jersey man has been arrested on charges that he had explosive materials in his possession near a Washington, D.C., church that was preparing to celebrate an annual Mass marking the start of the U.S. Supreme Court's term, according to police and court records.

Louis Geri, 41, of Vineland, New Jersey, was charged with possession of a destructive device after his arrest on Sunday outside St. Matthew’s Cathedral, court records show.

Some Supreme Court justices usually attend the annual Red Mass. No justices went to this year's celebration, a court spokesperson said.

Police officers were clearing the area near the Roman Catholic church before the ceremony when they saw Geri setting up a tent on steps leading into the church. Geri had been barred from the premises previously and was arrested when he refused to move his tent off church property, police said.

Geri told police that he had explosive devices and said, “You might want to stay back and call the federales," according to a police report. Geri also was holding a butane lighter and had a bag containing vials of a yellow liquid, police said.

In the tent, investigators found what appeared to be parts for making a “destructive device,” a court filing says.

Geri “described his devices as grenades and explosives containing (nitromethane) with a rubber band securing a fuse to be used for detonation,” the filing says.

Police said they also found paperwork in Geri's possession that expressed “significant animosity” toward the Roman Catholic church, Jewish people, Supreme Court “members” and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Geri is represented by an attorney from the Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia, court records show. The attorney and a spokesperson for that office didn't immediately respond to messages seeking comment on the charges.

A D.C. Superior Court judge ordered Geri held without bond until a hearing on Thursday.

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Associated Press writer Mark Sherman in Washington contributed to this report.