Shocked neighbors of the Bronx brothers who city officials said were stockpiling bomb-making materials in their Pelham Parkway apartment described the two as “quiet” Friday and tried to understand how that type of activity was happening so close to their homes.
“I’m scared. Now I’m thinking, ‘Oh my god, in my building?’ ” said Rabia Qureshi, 50, who lives on the second floor of the building on Matthews Avenue, between Pelham Parkway South and Lydig Avenue. “What if they blew the building up? They could have done anything.”
Neighbors said the 27-year-old twins, Christian, a former charter high school teacher, and Tyler Toro, lived in the seven-story building with their mother and a dog, who was heard barking from inside the apartment Friday.
The two were amassing bomb-making materials and paying high school students to strip gunpowder from fireworks, according to the criminal complaint. Federal agents found explosive precursors, such as iron oxide and aluminum powder, and a bag of metal spheres which are used to cause more damage in an explosion, the complaint said.
Qureshi said she saw the twins three days before their arrest on Thursday.
“They were just quiet; they didn’t make any eye contact. They never said hi or hello,” Qureshi said.
Another resident of the building, 63-year-old Rochelle Shapiro, also described them as quiet, but said “they were nice boys.”
“They were well-dressed. [Their mom] is a pleasant lady,” she said. “Never had any incident with these people . . . They minded their business.”
Gloria Vazquez, 37, who lives on the third floor of the building, said she was shocked by the news.
“You never know who your neighbors are,” she said. “I’m going to be more aware from now on.”
When the FBI showed up at 6 a.m. Thursday and started banging on the Toros’ door on the fourth floor, Nida Qureshi, 21, who lives across the hall, had no idea why.
“We asked them what was going on,” she said. “We found it out on the news later that night.
“Cops were all around this floor. Their mother was out crying. She was calling someone to come and take care of the dog.”
Christian and Tyler Toro pleaded not guilty Thursday and were held without bail.
