LATEST DEVELOPMENTS
— Investigators find an image on surveillance video of a man they believe could be a suspect in the bombings.
— A report that there had been an arrest in the case is strongly denied by the FBI and Boston police.
— In another possible break, investigators find the lid of a pressure cooker on the roof of a building near the blast scene.
— Doctors say some victims, including children ages 5, 9 and 11, remain in critical condition.
— President Barack Obama will travel to Boston today for a memorial service for the three people killed in the blasts.
In what could be a major break in the Boston Marathon case, investigators were on the hunt for a man seen in a department-store surveillance video dropping off a bag at the site of the bombings, a Boston politician said Wednesday.
Separately, a law enforcement official confirmed that authorities had found an image of a potential suspect but didn’t know his name.
The development — less than 48 hours after the attack that left three people dead and more than 170 wounded — marked a possible turning point in a case that had investigators analyzing photos and videos frame by frame for clues to who carried out the twin bombings and why.
City Council President Stephen Murphy, citing a briefing by Boston police, said investigators saw the image on surveillance footage they got from a department store near the finish line, and matched the findings with witness descriptions of someone leaving the scene.
“I know it’s very active and very fluid right now — that they are on the chase,” Murphy said. He added: “They may be on the verge of arresting someone, and that’s good.”
The bombs were crudely fashioned from ordinary kitchen pressure cookers packed with explosives, nails and ball bearings, investigators and others close to the case said. Investigators suspect the devices were then hidden in black duffel bags and left on the ground.
As a result, they were looking for images of someone lugging a dark, heavy bag.
One department store video “has confirmed that a suspect is seen dropping a bag near the point of the second explosion and heading off,” Murphy said.
A law enforcement official who spoke on condition of anonymity and was not authorized to discuss the case publicly confirmed only that investigators had an image of a potential suspect whose name was not known to them and who had not been questioned.
The turn of events came with Boston in a state of high excitement over conflicting reports of a breakthrough.
A law enforcement official briefed on the investigation said around midday that a suspect was in custody. The official, who was not authorized to divulge details of the investigation and spoke on condition of anonymity, said the suspect was expected in federal court. But the FBI and the U.S. attorney’s office in Boston said no arrests had been made.
By nightfall, there was no evidence anyone was in custody. No one was brought to court. The law enforcement official, who had affirmed there was a suspect in custody even after federal officials denied it, was unable to obtain any further information or explanation.
In another possible break, investigators found a piece of the lid of one of the pressure cookers that investigators believe were used as explosive devices in the bombings was found on a rooftop near the blast, a law enforcement official said.
The pressure cookers were filled with nails, ball bearings and black powder, and the devices were triggered by “kitchen-type” egg timers, one official said.
The resulting explosions sent metal tearing through skin and muscle, destroying the lower limbs of some victims who had only shreds of tissue holding parts of their legs together when they arrived at the emergency room of Massachusetts General Hospital, doctors there said.
Law enforcement officials said the devices were probably hidden inside dark nylon duffel bags or backpacks and left on the street or sidewalk near the finish line. Forensic experts said that the design and components of the homemade devices were generic but that the marking “6L,” indicating a 6-liter container, could help identify a brand and manufacturer and possibly lead to information on the buyer.
”It will have to go through many tests to see what they can glean further and identify where it was produced and sold, and then look at it forensically,” a law enforcement official said.
Officials said evidence from the scene was being shipped to labs in Quantico, Va. Fox News showed pictures that it said were from the crime scene that showed a chunk of a damaged stainless steel pressure cooker, with its UL number visible.
Steven Bartholomew, a spokesman for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, said the blast was powerful enough to toss debris on top of buildings
“Some of that debris got projected on top of buildings and embedded in buildings in that finish line area, so that tells us we have a lot of work to do,” Bartholomew said.
Investigators in white jumpsuits fanned out across the streets, rooftops and awnings around the blast site in search of clues. They picked through trash cans, plastic cup sleeves and discarded sports drink dispensers.
As the investigation went into a third day, there were signs that the nation was jittery and on high alert. New York City officials said there had been an increase in reports of suspicious packages. In Oklahoma City, City Hall was briefly evacuated Wednesday morning as authorities examined a stolen rental truck that was parked outside, just a few days shy of the anniversary of the 1995 bombing of the nearby Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building. Officials said no bomb was found.
In Washington, parts of two Senate office buildings were shut down as officials investigated reports of suspicious letters or packages. And in Boston, the federal courthouse was evacuated in the afternoon by officials calling out “code red,” and bomb-sniffing dogs were sent inside.
The courthouse was swarming with scores of journalists from around the world, who had been brought there by the rumors of an arrest in the case.
“All of a sudden, we get this evacuation thing,” said evacuee Dave Greenup, 58, who works at a restaurant inside the courthouse. “Every time we turn around now, there’s something. I was really hoping they caught somebody. You want closure.”
Court employees were allowed back into the courthouse about 4:15 p.m.
Boston will remain on high alert today as President Barack Obama travels there to attend a memorial service for the three people killed in the explosions. The blasts killed 8-year-old Martin Richard of Boston and 29-year-old Krystle Campbell of Medford, Mass. The Shenyang Evening News, a state-run Chinese newspaper, identified the third victim as Lu Lingzi, a graduate student at Boston University.
About the Author
