Philadelphia man charged for possessing weapons of mass destruction, creating makeshift lab in Mayfair
The Philadelphia District Attorney's Office and federal investigators announced charges Wednesday against a man they say possessed weapons of mass destruction.
Evgenii Sadrislamov, who turns 28 on Saturday, was charged for his role in creating several explosive devices in a makeshift lab in the Mayfair section of Northeast Philly. He was charged with arson, weapons of mass destruction, causing catastrophe, and other related charges after he was taken into custody last week by Philly police.
Investigators said this isn't the first time Sadrislamov has been arrested for illegal explosives. Officials said he was arrested in 2020 for building commercial-grade fireworks and is currently on probation for those charges.
"A row home possessed explosives that could've leveled a block," said Assistant District Attorney Angela Brennan, who is also the assistant supervisor of the DAO's major trials unit.
According to the DA's office, police responded to a report of a row home fire on the 7100 block of Montague Street last Friday, Oct. 4. That's where investigators say Sadrislamov was making explosive devices and was operating an explosives manufacturing laboratory inside the Mayfair home near Frankford Avenue.
Deputy Commissioner James Kelly III of the Philadelphia Police Department said bomb technicians entered the property and recovered a variety of explosive and explosive-related hazardous and nonhazardous items. The property was declared a hazmat scene after officers arrived.
"Containers, fusing and additional materials used to assemble homemade fireworks and small improvised explosive devices were recovered," Kelly said. "Chemicals used to manufacture homemade explosives, formulas and extensive literature for the manufacturing homemade explosives were recovered."
Neighbors said they were shocked by the arrest.
Bob Ogle, a neighbor, said his wife ran out of their home. He said he "never smelled a fire" like the one that was coming from Sadrislamov's home.
Another neighbor, Gerald Brady, said he couldn't believe something like this happened in Mayfair.
"I would never imagine somebody that lives on my block a couple doors down would be doing something of that nature," Brady said.
Sadrislamov's preliminary hearing is scheduled for Oct. 22.