Driving to an adversary’s house in your own vehicle and leaving your name and address on an explosive device is usually not an effective way of getting away with a crime, but that is what the FBI claims a New Jersey man did.
Damjan Stanivukovic, 52, of Closter, New Jersey, and companion Vladamir Radunovic, 47, of Pompton Lakes, New Jersey, were arrested on Jan. 13 and accused of setting off an explosion to intimidate a Mount Kisco businessman with whom Stanivukovic has a legal dispute.
The men were charged with unlawful possession of a destructive device and conspiracy to commit stalking with the intent to intimidate, in U.S. District Court, White Plains.
On the morning of Jan. 11, a box that had been placed in a Mount Kisco driveway exploded.
The victim, who is not identified in the criminal complaint, told investigators that he had been involved in an 8-year legal dispute with Stanivukovic, the owner of Adria Infrastructure LLC in Maspeth, Queens.
Details in the criminal complaint match a 2017 lawsuit filed by Adria Infrastructure against Henick-Lane Inc., a Long Island City contractor whose CEO, Ernst Henick, lives in Mount Kisco.
The businessman told investigators that on Oct. 13, shortly before a court date, a masked man handed him a note at his business, stating “Be smart, do not appear on Court on Monday. Better for everybody.”
As investigators were interviewing the victim five hours after the explosion, he received a text message: “Knock knock, show up and what do you think is next. This is your final warning.”
By then, investigators had a good clue as to where to look.
Bomb technicians had recovered remnants from the explosion, including a 2.5-gallon gasoline can, cardboard tubing from a fireworks shell, a small orange cone and a piece of the box with a shipping label addressed to Damjan Stanivukovic in Closter, New Jersey.
Investigators also availed themselves of surveillance videos from the homes of the victim and Stanivukovic, cell phone records and license plate reader data.
On the morning of the explosion, two men in a black Jeep Grand Cherokee arrived at the victim’s home around 5:11 a.m. A man wearing a hoodie and a mask, got out of the Jeep, carrying a cardboard box that appeared to be on fire, and placed the box at the end of the driveway. The Jeep left the scene, and at about 7:09 a.m. an explosion was recorded on the video.
The Jeep was registered to Stanivukovic’s business, according to the complaint.
Surveillance video from Stanivukovic’s home and license plate readers show two men getting into the Jeep and leaving the New Jersey home around 3:35 a.m.
The Jeep was tracked crossing the Mario Cuomo Bridge from Rockland to Westchester counties around 4:11 a.m.; traveling up the Taconic State Parkway and driving near the victim’s home around 4:52 a.m; and heading away from Mount Kisco by 5:20 a.m.
The Jeep and the New Jersey home were searched on Jan. 13. Investigators found a small orange cone inside the Jeep.
Inside the home they found fireworks, gasoline cans, a book titled “Make Fireworks and Explosives at Home — The Ultimate Instruction Manual for Beginners and Pyrotechnicians to Build Firecrackers, Fireworks and Explosives from Scratch.”
Two handguns, a shotgun and a bulletproof vest were found in Stanivukovic’s bedroom, according to the complaint. A handgun was found in a guest bedroom allegedly used by Radunovic.
Cell phone data indicated that the threatening “Knock knock” text message was sent from a phone that had been used only for that one action and that was later found in Maspeth about a mile away from Adria Infrastructure.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Victoria Reznick ordered both men to be detained without bail “on grounds of dangerousness to the community, and also as a flight risk for Radunovic, a citizen of Montenegro.
Stanivukovic is still dealing with the lawsuit that allegedly prompted the explosion.
Adria Infrastructure had claimed that Henick-Lane Inc. owed more than $4.1 million for piping subcontract work it performed on a Staten Island Courthouse project.
Henick-Lane denied the allegations and counter-claimed that it spent an extra $1 million fixing incomplete and defective work by Adria.
When Stanivukovic failed to appear for a court conference on Jan.10, the day before the Mount Kisco explosion, the judge issued a default judgment dismissing Adria’s claims and affirming Henick-Lane’s counterclaims.
An inquest on the damages is scheduled for Feb. 1 in the Staten Island court.
