Armed man arrested at ‘No Kings' protest had more than a dozen explosives at home, police say
A 31-year-old Pennsylvania man initially arrested on suspicion of illegally carrying a gun near a 'No Kings' protest outside Philadelphia over the weekend was rearrested this week after investigators found a pipe bomb and several other explosive devices at his home, authorities said.
Kevin Krebs, of Malvern in suburban Chester County, is facing charges including felony possession or manufacture of weapons of mass destruction, according to the county district attorney's office and court documents.
Affidavits of probable cause obtained by CNN did not allege what Krebs may have been planning or say why he was near Saturday's protest. The Chester County district attorney's office declined to comment further on the case Wednesday, except to say that the investigation is active and ongoing.
CNN has sought comment from an attorney for Krebs.
The investigation began early Saturday afternoon as a 'No Kings' rally – one of numerous protests nationwide against President Donald Trump's policies – was getting underway in the Pennsylvania borough of West Chester, some 25 miles west of downtown Philadelphia.
A bystander alerted a police officer they saw a man near the protest strapping on 'something akin to a tactical vest,' putting a handgun in his waistband, and hiding it under a neon yellow raincoat, according to a criminal complaint obtained by CNN.
Police radioed the description to other officers in the area, and a West Chester police officer spotted Krebs in a yellow raincoat a block from rally-goers, according to the complaint.
The officer stopped and searched Krebs and found a loaded Sig Sauer P320 handgun, a 'bayonet knife,' pepper spray and several magazines of ammunition concealed under his raincoat and clothes, the complaint says.
Police then found his vehicle near the area, with an AR-15-style rifle 'on the floor of the rear seat,' according to the criminal complaint.
Investigators determined Krebs didn't have a concealed carry permit, and he was arrested and charged Saturday with carrying a firearm without a license before being released on bond on Sunday, authorities said.
But the investigation was not over.
According to court documents, part of the bail agreement was Krebs had to surrender any weapons and stay at his parents' home in West Chester.
On Monday evening, officers executed two search warrants at about the same time: one at his parents' home, where they encountered Krebs, and another at his listed home in Malvern, about 8 miles from West Chester, the complaint says.
While officers spoke with Krebs and his father in the first location, officers made an alarming discovery at the second location, according to the complaint.
Chester County detectives found what appeared to be a pipe bomb in a desk drawer in the garage of the suburban Krebs' home, and 'detailed drawings of three grenades,' according to the complaint. They called in a neighboring county's bomb squad.
In addition to the pipe bomb containing nails and screws, officials found 'improvised detonators' in a box labeled 'no touch pls' in the garage, the complaint says. Also in the garage were more pipes with timers attached to them, shell casings with unidentified powders in them, several ignition fuses, and explosive mixtures, according to the complaint.
'In total, 13 improvised explosive devices were located inside' the home, the complaint says. The bomb squad rendered all devices safe, the district attorney's office said.
Krebs was rearrested Tuesday morning and this time denied bail, according to court records.
Krebs faces 13 felony counts of possession or manufacture of weapons of mass destruction; a felony count of causing catastrophe; 13 misdemeanor counts of possession of an instrument of crime with intent to employ it criminally; and a misdemeanor count of recklessly endangering another person, according to court records.
A preliminary hearing on the latest charges is scheduled for July 3, according to court documents. A preliminary hearing of July 15 is listed for the initial carrying a firearm without a license charge.
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Shortly after the new year, Fred Kerley walked with his girlfriend down a famous street in a glitzy section of Miami Beach, the kind of place that once had seemed so distant. Before Kerley sprinted in two Olympics and became one of the world's fastest men, he was raised by his aunt in a Texas home that at various points housed more than two dozen people. To remind himself of how far he had come, he had the word 'Bless' tattooed on his right arm, an identifying mark that would later appear in an arrest affidavit. Kerley and his girlfriend were returning to his car. They found it roped off behind a police scene. An argument with police erupted into a scuffle, body-cam footage shows, and quickly four police officers were on top of him, delivering blows to his head and ribs. 'Damn, I tried to get away from this life,' Kerley later said on the podcast 'The Pivot.' 'And this life got in front of me.' 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'We worked so hard for you to build this career, and him building his own image, for you to wait until you're 30 years old and destroy it.' Kerley has pleaded not guilty in all three cases, and his lawyer said in an interview that he believes all of the charges will be dismissed. Kerley, who declined to be interviewed for this story, has showed little outward concern, competing in professional races on three continents this season and posting frequently on social media. In one recent post, he accepted compliments for wearing Nike sneakers and a Louis Vuitton belt on a ranch. 'Legendary,' he wrote. 'I just don't think that someone gets to this level of athletic performance by being a quitter or by being someone that wallows in their suffering,' said Richard Cooper, Kerley's Miami-based attorney. 'He's focus-driven. He's going to continue doing what he does best.' In a statement, USA Track & Field indicated that Kerley remains eligible to compete in its national championships, which will begin July 31 in Eugene, Oregon. The U.S. championships are considered a 'protected competition,' which means the eligibility of athletes is covered by the Ted Stevens Olympic and Amateur Sports Act and USOPC bylaws. 'USATF is monitoring Fred Kerley's ongoing legal situation carefully and although he faces serious allegations, he also has the right to compete in certain track and field meetings (protected competitions),' the statement read. 'USATF is determined to provide a safe environment for all our community with a zero tolerance policy on any form of violent behavior.' World Athletics, track and field's global governing body, did not provide any specific rationale for its decision to allow Kerley to compete in Diamond League events. When Kerley won a bronze medal at the Paris Olympics in the 100 meters last summer, a probable cause for his arrest on domestic violence charges sat in a law enforcement database. Back home, Angelica Kerley tried to avoid the race. People congratulated her, unaware of their separation, her allegations and her subsequent petition for divorce. She finds it odd that Kerley is still allowed to run. 'It's triggering to me even now,' Angelica said. 'Knowing that the type of person he is, people are still publicly praising him.' Kerley's rise to the Olympics began in hardship. His father was imprisoned, and his mother, Kerley previously said in interviews, fell victim to drug addiction by the time he turned 2. Kerley moved from San Antonio to Taylor, Texas, where his aunt, Virginia, took in him and his siblings. He lived at times under a roof with 26 people. Two of his brothers, records show, have been either charged with or convicted of felony drug crimes. If not for track, Kerley said on 'The Pivot' in April: 'I don't know what I'd be doing. I definitely wouldn't be doing nothing legal.' His high school track coach recommended Kerley to South Plains College, a junior college in Levelland, Texas. Christopher Beene, the South Plains coach, watched Kerley at the Texas state meet his senior year. When he saw Kerley walk to his mark for the 4x400 relay, all long limbs and bulging muscles, Beene turned to his assistant and said, 'We're signing that kid.' In his telling, Kerley joined South Plains as a walk-on. Technically, that's true. But Beene was eager to offer Kerley a scholarship. He just didn't have to. Kerley was deemed a ward of the state, which meant Texas would pay for Kerley's room and board, tuition, books, everything. Kerley met a teammate then named Angelica Taylor. Over a year of Kerley's pursuit, she fell for him. He was persistent, she said. He was respectful when they were alone together. He had a generous heart. Another teammate, with whom he was not friendly, once asked Kerley to buy her a bag of chips. He obliged. 'Why would you do that if you don't like her?' Angelica asked Kerley. 'Because I know what it's like to go without eating,' Angelica recalled Kerley saying. 'And I don't want anyone else to have to feel like that.' Kerley treated track and field as a way out of his circumstances. He rarely spoke with coaches unless he had a question. 'If you told him, 'Let's go run through this wall,' Fred would say, 'Okay, how many times?'' Beene said. 'He would run until he'd fall down on the track. Then he'd get back up, and if he had another rep, he'd get it done.' An incident early in his sophomore year at South Plains threatened Kerley's career before it blossomed. According to Beene, Kerley went with a group of South Plains sprinters and basketball players to a dance club in a rough part of Lubbock. The South Plains athletes squabbled with another group of men. The basketball team's point guard escalated matters, Beene said, charging one of the other guys. Kerley grabbed the point guard and held him back. Once Kerley released him, the point guard channeled his anger at Kerley: He grabbed a piece of glass off the ground and slashed Kerley over the eye, according to Beene. 'Fred literally could have killed that guy right there,' Beene said. 'And Fred stopped, took a deep breath, trying to keep the blood from running into his eye. The other guys from the track team said, 'Come on, Fred, let's go.' So he backed off and walked away. That's the kind of person we were so proud of.' When the incident reached the South Plains administration, Beene said, he fought to maintain Kerley's place at the school. If he had been suspended, Kerley probably wouldn't have accumulated enough credit hours to transfer to a four-year school. 'He saved himself by acting right, and he allowed me a chance to save him later,' Beene said. With Beene's support, Kerley transferred to Texas A&M, a powerhouse where he set the collegiate record in the 400. The first time Angelica Kerley saw a violent streak in her future husband, she said, came shortly after they moved into their first apartment together in College Station, when their daughter was 1. Angelica recalled trying to help Kerley with an iPad. He snatched it away, and Angelica smacked it out of his grasp. Kerley stood up, Angelica said, and wrapped his hands around her neck. 'I got up, and I shoved him into the wall, and I told him he better never do that again,' Angelica said. It was not the only red flag. Angelica Kerley said that after the couple moved to Miami, while she was pregnant with their second child, they argued one morning about Kerley not walking their dog. She said Kerley grew upset and 'smacked' her in the back of her head. 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He discovered his car had been roped off inside a police scene and approached four Miami Beach police officers with 'an aggressive demeanor,' according to an arrest affidavit. Kerley argued with them, body-camera footage shows. One placed his hand on Kerley's chest, body-camera footage shows, which the arrest affidavit described as an attempt to create space from Kerley. Kerley slapped the hand away, then shoved the officer. A fracas ensued. Four officers wrestled Kerley to the ground and pummeled Kerley, according to the affidavit, with 'hammer fists toward the defendant's upper head area' and 'multiple diversionary strikes toward his rib cage, which were unsuccessful.' After roughly a minute, the officers backed off Kerley. When he stood, one officer Tasered Kerley for five seconds in his lower back. 'Full neuromuscular incapacitation (NMI) was achieved,' the affidavit reads. Body-camera footage shows Kerley falling onto his stomach. Kerley was arrested and charged with battery against a police officer, resisting an officer and disorderly conduct. At a bond hearing the next day, Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Mindy Glazer found no probable cause for the disorderly conduct charge and lightly admonished a Miami Beach police sergeant who appeared via videoconference. 'Sergeant,' she said, 'this could have been handled a different way.' Kerley's jail booking triggered an automatic alert to a detective with the Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office who had been looking to arrest Kerley in connection with an unrelated incident six months earlier: Kerley's wife had called police and alleged he had strangled her. On May 7, 2024, according to an arrest affidavit, the couple got into an argument that, Angelica said, was far different from the violent flashes she had experienced in the past. 'I thought that the man was going to kill me,' Angelica said. Kerley began approaching Angelica in an 'aggressive demeanor,' according to the affidavit, and she told him to step back. Kerley did not, the affidavit reads, and out of fear Angelica punched him in the face. 'He took his arm, and he put it around my neck,' Angelica said. 'He's strangling me with his arm from behind. I couldn't even get out of it. He lifted up the top half of my body, squeezed in between his arms, where the frontside of your elbow is, and he choked me. He strangled me.' Their three children, now 9, 3 and 1, were in the room at the time, Angelica said. She still didn't know whether she should contact police. 'You don't want to call the cops on somebody that you love,' Angelica said. Ultimately she did, swayed by her daughter's account of what she had experienced. When officers arrived, according to the arrest affidavit, Kerley had fled. Because Kerley was no longer at the scene, the detective entered a notice into a law-enforcement database that Kerley was to be arrested on a charge of domestic battery, a sheriff's department spokesman told the Miami Herald in January. Kerley was aware of the complaint as he trained for and competed in the Olympics last summer. Cooper, his lawyer, said Kerley had been led to believe was in the clear. A detective 'even told me to tell Fred to break a leg in Paris,' Cooper said. Cooper called the allegation 'very serious' and expressed confidence Angelica's account will be proven false. 'I have no reason to lie,' Angelica said. 'I don't have any personal gain or publicity I'm trying to gain from this situation. It's domestic violence. Who wants to talk about that? Who wants that to be their image?' In January, Angelica filed for divorce in Florida. In her petition, she alleged Kerley had been unfaithful. She also asked for a restraining order, alleging Kerley 'has been harassing and/or abusing wife and her family, friends and acquaintances and wife fears that husband will irreparably harm wife unless restrained by this court.' Angelica Kerley claimed he has refused to financially support her and their children. She filed for child support in November, and she said Kerley refused to attend mediation. The divorce case is still pending in Miami-Dade court. Kerley's legal trouble expanded this spring. On May 1, he traveled to the Le Meridien hotel in Dania Beach, about 25 miles north of Miami Beach. He was preparing for the second event of Grand Slam Track, a new league started by Olympic legend Michael Johnson. It had made Kerley one of its stars, featuring him on its website. Olympic hurdler Alaysha Johnson, who dated Kerley for six months in 2024, according to a Broward County Sherriff arrest affidavit, also planned to compete in the Miami Grand Slam Track meet. She ran into Kerley at the hotel, according to a Broward Sheriff's Office arrest affidavit, and they began to argue. According to the affidavit, Kerley shouted something along the lines of 'I'm going to f--- everyone up in here.' Kerley struck Johnson in the face, according to the affidavit, causing her nose to bleed. The affidavit noted that photographs showed injuries consistent with Johnson's telling. In a statement Kerley released days later, he acknowledged there had been a physical altercation but said he was arrested only because he chose not to talk with police without his attorney present. 'Frankly, Kerley is a little nervous around law enforcement given the absolute beating that he received at the hands of the Miami Beach police early this year,' Cooper said. 'He did the right thing. He invoked his rights immediately. Without a rebuttal story, the police arrested him.' Kerley's account differs from the affidavit, Cooper said. Cooper said that another man was present and that the fight occurred between him and Kerley. Johnson, Cooper said, was there 'instigating' the fight and was struck inadvertently. 'The idea that Fred would punch someone if he didn't have this nonsense domestic violence allegation, no one would even buy that for a second, that he would punch a random woman, an ex-girlfriend he saw in the hallway of a hotel,' Cooper said. 'That's so out of character, frankly. But because he has this other nonsense allegation, it does lend some credence in the eyes of the public, which is unfortunate. 'Eventually, that case will be dismissed. His case in Miami Beach will be dismissed. And this Broward case will be the outlier and will be considered outlier alleged conduct and will once again seem ridiculous. We've got to crush all these one at a time.' Through her track and field agent, Johnson declined to comment. Kerley's legal issues haven't stopped his career, but they have affected it. Since the most recent allegations, he has run in Diamond League meets in Morocco and, in early June, in Rome, where he finished fifth in the 100. The May altercation left Kerley suspended from Grand Slam Track until the conclusion of the legal case, a league spokesman said. It cost him a potential financial windfall: Kenny Bednarek, promoted to be his main rival in a video still on Grand Slam Track's website, won $100,000 in each of the two meets Kerley missed, plus another $100,000 season-long bonus. In March, Beene ran into Kerley at the Texas Relays. He had not seen his old junior college sprinter in years. When he saw Kerley, he hugged him and told him, 'If you ever need anything, I'm still here.' Beene had read media reports about Kerley's altercation with police in Miami Beach but not the domestic violence allegation. He wondered whether fame had brought malign influences into Kerley's life. But he also remembered the kid who came from nothing and backed away from a fight with blood trickling into his eye. 'Unless he's changed a lot toward the negative, the Fred Kerley I know would not have done it the way they said he did it,' Beene said. Angelica said she is not in love with Kerley anymore but has love for him because he is the father of their children. She is leaning against testifying against him at a potential trial. 'I really don't want Fred to be in prison because of our kids,' Angelica said. 'I had a dad that was in prison, and he missed some of our lives.' Angelica wonders now whether Kerley was ever really the kind, generous person she met at South Plains. 'Honestly, I'm just tired,' she said. '… I understand he moves these certain ways because of things he has had to go through in his past, as a child. I understand why he's this way. But it's not fair to me to have to deal with that.' David Ovalle contributed to this report.
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Republicans in the Senate may be on the verge of their most consequential capitulation to President Trump so far — and I am not talking about the deficit-busting 'big, beautiful bill.' On Wednesday, when the eyes of the nation were still fixed on the Middle East, the Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing on Trump's nomination of Emil Bove to serve as a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, which covers cases from Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and the Virgin Islands. Bove's nomination is yet another sign that Trump's second term is beginning (yes, it's still only the beginning) very differently from his first. Just as he wants sycophants and yes men staffing his administration, he's now moving toward staffing the judiciary with the same kind of person: judges who will do whatever it takes to curry favor with a president who values fealty above all. By now, Americans are accustomed to the devolution of Trump's team. Serious people populated the highest levels of the executive branch at the start of Trump's first term, but now some of the most important positions in American government are held by cranks like Kash Patel, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Pete Hegseth. But as bad as those men are, their influence is ultimately limited — first by Trump himself, who feels completely free to overrule and disregard any decision they make for the sake of his own interests and whims, and second by time itself. Trump's political appointees won't be in American government for long, and while they can inflict lasting damage during their short tenures, the next president can replace them and at least start the process of repair. Emil Bove, however, would be a problem for a very long time. At 44 years old, he's been nominated for a lifetime appointment to the federal bench. That means he'd long outlast Trump in the halls of American power, and if past performance is any measure of future results, we should prepare for a judge who would do what he deems necessary to accomplish his political objectives — law and morality be damned. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
