Court records obtained by the Arizona Daily Independent reveal a 14-year-old Douglas boy who was making pipe bombs in his family home used the profile “Slave of Allah786” on the Telegram social media app to share bombmaking instructions with others and even suggested detonating a bomb at the Phoenix Pride Parade.
Carlos Eduardo Santa Cruz was arrested May 10 following an FBI investigation started in March of “a potential homegrown violent extremist,” according to a probable cause statement filed with the court. Among the items seized during a search of the teen’s home was a completed pipe bomb, bombmaking materials, and a book about the Tsarnaev brothers who committed the Boston Marathon bombing in 2013.
Santa Cruz remains in the Cochise County jail in lieu of a $200,000 cash or secured bond. He appeared before Judge Laura Cardinal of the Cochise County Superior Court on Monday for a pretrial conference and will be back in court Aug. 3 for a hearing on whether his case would be best handled by the county’s juvenile court.
Most of the case documents related to whether Santa Cruz should be adjudicated as a juvenile have been sealed, but what is publicly available shows court-appointed defense attorney Sochi Orozco has concerns about the boy’s mental health and age.
Nothing has been discussed in open court as to a motive for Santa Cruz’s actions, but the probable cause statement notes the teen told investigators he made a pipe bomb “in case the people threatening his brother went to hurt them.” No further information is noted as to who threatened the brother or why and when.
According to the probable cause statement, the FBI investigation into “Slave of Allah786” heated up May 1 when the user posted an image of bombmaking instructions on Telegram, a social media app which allows registered users to send encrypted messages. The instructions were traced to Inspire Magazine, described in court filings as “a known Jihad magazine.”
On May 6, investigators learned the same user account posted a photograph of what appeared to be an Improvised Explosive Device (IED). The photograph was visible “to multiple other users” and “appeared to be patterned after the bomb making instructions” previously shared on Telegram.
The user was eventually traced to a phone number registered to Santa Cruz’s mother in Douglas. On May 10, a federal search warrant was executed at two Douglas area residences. In addition to the Tsarnaev book and a completed galvanized elbow pipe bomb, investigators seized a partially assembled device and two cell phones.
Santa Cruz was given a Miranda Warning and interviewed in the presence of his parents. “During the course of the interview, Santacruz admitted he was using the handle of “Slave of Allah786” using his cellular phone with number (redacted). Santacruz stated he identified as Sunni Muslim online,” the probable cause statement says.
The statement also reveals Santa Cruz messaged with others via Telegram to suggest using a pipe bomb he made at the Phoenix Pride Parade in November. He also told investigators of exchanging a message with someone who “had a dream of being a martyr and using a bomb on a soccer field.”
Santa Cruz reportedly admitted searching online for a PDF file with bomb making instructions, telling investigators “it was fairly easy to find” and that he believed the instructions he shared with others were “the same” used by the Tsarnaev brothers.
The Douglas Police Department took Santa Cruz into custody based on the FBI investigation. The teen was indicted by a Cochise County grand jury on May 14 for five counts related to terrorism and two counts of misconduct involving weapons to facilitate terrorism.
A person convicted under Arizona law of an act of terrorism can be sentenced to natural life in prison which is not eligible for commutation, parole, work furlough, work release or release from confinement on any basis for the remainder of the defendant’s life. A defendant can also be sentenced to life in prison for which a suspension of sentence, probation, pardon, or release from confinement may be possible after serving 25 calendar years or the sentence is commuted.
If the defendant is not sentenced to life or natural life, the defendant must be sentenced to no less than 10 calendar years for each count, up to a maximum of 25 years.
Cochise County Attorney Brian McIntyre is prosecuting the Santa Cruz case himself. He must file a response later this week about whether the prosecution is more appropriate for the juvenile court. The judge ordered the filing to be made under seal due to privacy concerns.
