Holliston man charged with stockpiling weapons, threatening mosques

BOSTON — A Holliston man is accused of stockpiling weapons and threatening to kill police and Muslims, according to court documents.

In a criminal complaint filed in federal court Sunday, Joseph Gargiulo was charged with possessing ammunition while under a domestic violence restraining order.

A person whose name was redacted reported Gargiulo to be “unstable and unpredictable and further that Gargiulo hates gays, minorities, and the police.” The person also told investigators he has been using drugs and that “she was in fear for her life and for the public.”

FBI agents raided Gargiulo’s home in Holliston on Friday looking for weapons after getting tips from unnamed witnesses expressing concern over his mental state and things he said.

Gargiulo is accused of making threats against police, Muslims and even President Obama.

In a conversation with a witness, he allegedly “made a comment to the effect that when President Obama was on the golf course in Martha's  Vineyard, Gargiulo should have taken the opportunity to kill him.”

"I've known Mr. Gargiulo for about 12 years, I know what kind of a man he is, this is not something he would ever do," Gargiulo's attorney Mark Meehan told FOX25's Sharman Sachetti.

In a search of Gargiulo’s home, agents say they found ammunition, “parts to assemble AR-15 rifles, chemicals that could be combined to create incendiary and/or explosive compounds and materials threatening the commission of violent attacks against members of the Islamic faith.”

FBI special agent Maximilian Fox also says a search turned up a number of loaded magazines and a plastic can full of bullets.

According to court documents, Gargiulo has had a number of run-ins with the law in the past and has been suspected in several crimes. He is currently under a domestic violence order issued in Wrentham District Court in July and was due in court related to that order Monday, Aug. 29.

The witnesses who provided tips to the FBI were not named in court documents, but told agents they believed Gargiulo was a danger to the community.

A witness said she was worried about Gargiulo, because he had recently acquired “parts to make an AR-15, and also that he was stockpiling food, water and other weapons, to include Tasers, mace guns, hunting knives and thermite. The tip also reported that Gargiulo had stated that ‘he will plant bombs in police stations ... and kill as many homeland security officers as he can before they kill him.’"

“According to the report, Gargiulo Googles how to make bombs and how to kill a person the quickest along with what part of the body makes a person bleed the fastest,” the court documents state.

Gargiulo allegedly told a witness he planned to "chain a mosque closed and burn it down … burn every [expletive] down in there" – though no specifics were mentioned.

According to the court documents, a witness also told police “Gargiulo believes that the structure of America will collapse and that America is going to enter a state of martial law. The court documents claimed Gargiulo had demonstrated the use of Tasers to both children and has deployed them against inanimate objects and on himself.”

"There's a long history of false allegations on behalf of the mother of his children," the attorney said.

The FBI says they found aluminum powder, ammonium nitrate, and iron oxide -- materials that can be used to create explosives and incendiaries. Agents say they also recovered handwritten notes threatening violence against members of the Islamic religion.

Gargiulo is not licensed to carry a gun in Massachusetts. In the court documents, agents requested a warrant to conduct a more thorough search of his home.

He could face 5-10 years in prison and a fine of $25,000, according to the department of justice.

You can read the criminal complaint filed in court here.

Cox Media Group