NEW YORK -- The order made a vendor anxious: a large amount of chemicals, destined for a buyer who had ordered a vast quantity of the same substance before, authorities said. The vendor's concerns sent police and federal agents to a Staten Island home and the discovery of more than a ton of potassium nitrate _ a substance often used in pyrotechnics. A resident of the home was arrested on a reckless endangerment charge, police said Friday. Police spokesman Paul Browne said there was no evidence that the suspect, identified as 57-year-old Miguel Serrano, was involved in making bombs or selling bomb-making materials.
Police said they found the large cache of potassium nitrate Thursday evening in a storage facility near Serrano's home in the Graniteville area, on the west side of Staten Island. Small amounts of potassium nitrate, mercury, peroxide and sulfur were found inside the residence, authorities said.
Serrano was apparently selling the chemicals in smaller quantities on the Internet, authorities said. No telephone number for Serrano could be found at the address police gave for him. Police weren't certain early Friday whether he had a lawyer. The area around the house was cordoned off, and the surrounding block was evacuated for hours, as authorities removed the chemicals. Police said early Friday that residents had been allowed back in.
Nicole Bermudez, 13, said police knocked on her door about 6:30 p.m. Thursday, telling her family to evacuate. "We grabbed our things and left. We were scared," she said. Rumors circulated for a time that a more sinister chemical had been found, and resident John Mausch, 46, said he was only somewhat relieved when he found out the substance was potassium nitrate. "I came out and saw all the police _ I got very alarmed," he said.
Joseph Green, a senior special agent with the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and Explosives, said an Ohio vendor who deals with chemicals told the agency Thursday that a Staten Island resident had ordered a large quantity of chemicals. The vendor apparently became alarmed because of the buyer's previous large order, which had been delivered.