How the Boston Marathon bombing suspects were hunted down [Updated]
Thursday night and Friday morning turned the sleepy Boston suburb of Watertown into a war zone. And one suspect is still at large
The hunt that led to the death of one of the suspects in the Boston Marathon bombings and, as of Friday morning, the full-bore manhunt for the second suspect in a sleepy Boston suburb, began Thursday night at a 7-Eleven in Cambridge. On Friday morning, police shut down all transportation in the area and urged residents of Watertown and the surrounding suburbs, including Cambridge, to stay home, and businesses to close. Here's a recap of the incredibly dramatic chain of events Thursday night and Friday:
(Check the latest updates at the bottom of this story.)
THURSDAY NIGHT:
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According to The New York Times, it started this way: "The pursuit began after 10 p.m. Thursday when two men robbed a 7/11 near Central Square in Cambridge. A security camera caught a man identified as one of the suspects, wearing a gray hoodie."
At about 10:48 p.m. — roughly five hours after the FBI released photos and video of the Boston Marathon bombing suspects — an unidentified MIT police officer was shot multiple times in his car in Cambridge. A short while later, two men carjacked a Mercedes SUV in Cambridge, keeping the driver in the car for half an hour and then releasing him at a gas station.
FRIDAY MORNING:
The police tracked down the SUV in Watertown, about 4 miles away from Cambridge. The suspects reportedly threw grenades or other explosives out of the window and engaged the police in a long, intense gun battle.
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Here's amateur video of the gunfight:
During the gun battle, an MBTA transit police officer was shot, as was one of the suspects. Early Friday, Massachusetts State Police spokesman David Procopio said the MIT and Watertown events were probably related, and could be tied to the marathon bombings. The FBI early Friday released new photos of the Boston bombing suspects:
The wounded suspect, the "dark cap" on on the right, was taken to Beth Israel hospital. He was pronounced dead at about 1:35 a.m. He had multiple gunshot wounds and trauma consistent with bomb blasts. The second suspect, the "white cap" one, escaped. The Boston police released this photo of the white cap suspect, taken at the 7-Eleven:
At 3:02 a.m., Boston Police Commissioner Ed Davis confirmed media speculation:
Police, federal agents, and bomb squads swarmed Watertown and shut down a roughly 20-block perimeter to search for "white cap." At a subsequent press conference, Commissioner Davis urged Watertown residents to stay indoors and not answer their doors or stop their cars for anyone but uniformed police officers. "We believe this is a terrorist, we believe this is a man that's come here to kill people," he said.
UPDATE 6:55 a.m. ET:
The AP reports on the name and nationality of the two suspects.
CBS News reports that the suspects are brothers and have been here for a year, probably not on a student visa. They are believed to have military training.
Russian media tracked down what's purportedly Tsarnaev's social media account. Here are two photos:
UPDATE 7:35 a.m. ET:
NPR News reports that police learned Tsarnaev's identity from the driver's license of the dead suspect, his brother. The brother has been identified as Tamerlan Tzarnaev, 26.
UPDATE 8:05 a.m. ET:
Boston police and Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick (D) are now urging all residents of Boston to stay inside, doors locked, and not open the door to anybody but uniformed police with ID. The transit police officer wounded early Friday was identified as Richard H. Donohue, 33.
UPDATE 8:30 a.m. ET:
All taxi service in Boston has been suspended. Photographer Johannes Hirn featured Tamerlan Tzarnaev, a boxer, in a photo essay, before he competed in the National Golden Gloves competition in Salt Lake City. Here's some of the text, via Slate's David Weigel:
Tamerlan, who studies at Bunker Hill Community College in Boston and wants to become an engineer, took the semester off from school to train for the competition.Tamerlan fled Chechnya with his family because of the conflict in the early 90s, and lived for years in Kazakhstan before getting to the United States as a refugee.Originally from Chechnya, but living in the United States since five years, Tamerlan says: "I don't have a single American friend, I don't understand them."If he wins enough fights... Tamerlan says he could be selected for the US Olympic team and be naturalized American. Unless his native Chechnya becomes independent, Tamerlan says he would rather compete for the United States than for Russia.Tamerlan says he doesn't drink or smoke anymore: "God said no alcohol." A muslim, he says: "There are no values anymore," and worries that "people can't control themselves."
UPDATE 8:48 a.m. ET:
At least 10 officers have been treated for injuries sustained in the manhunt, per the Boston Globe.
UPDATE: 8:50 a.m. ET:
According to NBC, police have a third person in custody who is not one of the two suspects.
UPDATE: 8:57 a.m. ET:
The FBI has released another photo of suspect #2, who as of now is still at large.
The photo, via ABC:
UPDATE: 9:13 a.m. ET:
The New York Times has a helpful infographic detailing the suspects' movements since the manhunt began Thursday night. You can view that here.
UPDATE: 9:25 a.m. ET:
According to the Boston Globe, a law enforcement source told the paper that the deceased brother, Tamerlan Tzarnaev, had an "explosive trigger" on him when he was brought to the morgue Friday morning.
UPDATE: 9:38 a.m. ET:
The Boston Globe has confirmed the identity of the MIT police officer killed in the manhunt.
UPDATE: 9:54 a.m. ET: The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority has confirmed the identity of the MBTA officer wounded in the overnight manhunt.
UPDATE: 10:05 a.m. ET: UMass Dartmouth has confirmed that one of the suspects is a student registered at the college. They have closed the school for the day and are advising students there to remain indoors.
UPDATE: 10:08 a.m. ET: Attorney General Eric Holder and FBI Director Robert Mueller briefed President Obama this morning on the latest updates from Boston. Homeland Security head Janet Napolitano and Vice President Joe Biden are also being briefed this morning.
UPDATE: 10:14 a.m. ET: Connecticut State Police are now looking for a possible third suspect who is believed to be driving a gray Honda. From a state police news release:
Since the tragic bombing that took place in Boston on April 15, the Connecticut State Police has monitored all intelligence related to this investigation.
Today, April 19, 2013, the Connecticut State Police received information from the Boston Investigation that a suspect vehicle could POSSIBLY be occupied by a wanted suspect.
UPDATE: 10:29 a.m. ET: A Connecticut State Police spokesperson says that the Honda they'd been looking for has been found in Boston, according to Reuters.
UPDATE: 10:32 a.m. ET: Authorities have taken two men into custody at the Cambridge, Mass. home where the two suspects are believed to have stayed, according to NBC. Neither is considered to be a suspect in Monday's attacks.
UPDATE: 10:45 a.m. ET: Bolt Bus and Greyhound service have canceled all service in and out of Boston.
UPDATE: 10:57 a.m. ET: According to the Boston Globe, police are searching a 20-block area in Watertown, Mass. Police believe the missing suspect abandoned his car and is on foot.
UPDATE: 11:06 a.m. ET: Amtrak service has been suspended indefinitely in the Boston area, according to Bloomberg News. Meanwhile, taxi service has been restored in the city, according to the Boston Police Department.
UPDATE: 11:33 a.m. ET: Amtrak has released the following statement about suspended service:
At the request of local authorities, and due to ongoing police activity, Amtrak Acela Express and Northeast Regional service is suspended indefinitely between Providence, RI and Boston. Amtrak Downeaster is operating a modified schedule with no service to Boston. Amtrak service is operating normally between Washington, DC, Philadelphia and New York. The Springfield Shuttle between New Haven, Conn. and Springfield, Mass. is also operating on a normal schedule. A decision about restoration of service into the Boston area will be made when local authorities inform us operations can resume. Amtrak Police continue to coordinate with other law enforcement agencies. Additional updates will be provided throughout the day.
UPDATE: 11:46 a.m. ET: The FBI has released a new wanted poster for the at large suspect, Dzhokar Tsarnaev.
UPDATE: 11:54 a.m. ET: An uncle of the suspected Boston Marathon bombers called the two "losers" in an interview with reporters Friday morning, claiming they're inability to fit in led to Monday's attack.
UPDATE: 12:20 p.m. ET: Multiple news outlets say they've confirmed Tsarnaev's Twitter handle. Gawker's Adrian Chen, CNN, and others say Tsarnaev's classmates confirmed to them that the Twitter account is real.
UPDATE: 12:23 p.m. ET: Police say they believe the two suspects spent last night in the Honda CRV police had previously been looking for, according to the Associated Press. They added that investigators believe the two men used that vehicle to hijack a Mercedes SUV, and that the two then drove away separately. Police recovered the Honda Friday morning.
UPDATE: 12:37 p.m. ET: In a press conference Friday afternoon, Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick (D) said the stay-indoors order is still in effect for the time being. He and Boston Mayor Tom Menino urged residents to remain inside with their doors locked, and to not open up for anyone besides uniformed police officers.
"We are a city that is not going to let the terrorists win," Menino said.
A Massachusetts State Police spokesman added that police have combed through "60 to 70 percent" of the area in Watertown they've been searching today, but have yet to find the suspect.
UPDATE: 12:42 p.m. ET: According to NBC's Pete Williams, law enforcement officials are not ruling out the possibility that there are more than two suspects still on the loose. Investigators said yesterday that they initially had just one suspect, but that as their investigation proceeded, it turned up the second suspect.
UPDATE: 12:56 p.m. ET: Amtrak has suspended all service between New York and Boston. Amtrak had previously suspended partial service in the Boston area.
UPDATE: 1:05 p.m. ET: According to NBC, Boston bombing suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev flew to Russia last year and stayed there for six months. From NBC:
Boston Marathon bombing suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev flew in and out of John F. Kennedy Airport last year and was out of the country for six months, and investigators said they want to know if he received any terror training while he was overseas, NBC 4 New York has learned.
Travel records obtained by NBC 4 New York show Tsarnaev left New York on Jan. 12, 2012 for Sheremetyevo, Russia. He stayed overseas and returned to JFK on July 17.
The travel documents show a photo of a bearded Tsarnaev. The documents show the terror suspect was born on Oct. 21, 1986 and first entered the U.S. through JFK on July 19, 2003.
The documents show it was not until Friday that U.S. officials determined he was “a person or instrument that may pose a threat to the security of the United States.”
UPDATE: 1:20 p.m. ET: Police have announced there will be a controlled demolition on Norfolk St. in Cambridge, Mass. on Friday afternoon, near the home of the suspected marathon bombers.
UPDATE: 1:27 p.m. ET: The FBI has spoken with a sister of the Boston bombing suspects, according to the Associated Press. She is not a suspect herself.
UPDATE: 1:35 p.m. ET: Kurt Schwartz, head of the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency, has advised office workers to head home. The city has been locked down most of the day and the city's public transit remains closed, but Schwartz advised anyone who went in to work today without a car to hail a taxi or call a friend for a ride.
UPDATE: 1:45 p.m. ET: According to ABC, 15 police officers have been taken to a Boston hospital for injuries sustained in the overnight manhunt. Previous reports said at least 10 officers had been treated.
UPDATE: 1:50 p.m. ET: Connecticut State Police are now searching for a new vehicle, a green 1999 Honda Civic with license plate number 116 GC7, in connection with the ongoing Boston bombing manhunt. Earlier in the day, state police issued an alert for a Honda CRV in relation to the investigation, though that vehicle was subsequently recovered.
UPDATE: 1:57 p.m. ET: The family of Sean Collier, the MIT police officer slain in the overnight manhunt, issued a statement to the Boston Globe. From the Globe:
"We are heartbroken by the loss of our wonderful and caring son and brother, Sean Collier," the family wrote. "Our only solace is that Sean died bravely doing what he committed his life to — serving and protecting others. We are thankful for the outpouring of support and condolences offered by so many people." [Boston Globe]
UPDATE: 2:17 p.m. ET: A Somerville, Mass. mechanic told reporters Friday that one of the suspects picked up a car from him on Tuesday, the day after the marathon bombing. From Talking Points Memo's Eric Lach:
"He was biting his fingernails, and was shaky," Junior [the mechanic] said.
Tsarnaev had dropped off the car, which Junior described as a white Mercedes wagon, at the auto shop about two weeks earlier. It had rear bumper damage, and Tsarnaev had said it was his girlfriend's. On Tuesday, when Tsarnaev suddenly returned, Junior told him the car wasn’t ready.
"I don't care, I don't care, I don't care, I need the car right now," Tsarnaev said, according to Junior.
The mechanic said Tsarnaev took the car without its rear bumper on. [Talking Points Memo]
UPDATE: 2:38 p.m. ET: The White House has released a photo of President Obama meeting with top members of his national security team to discuss the developments in Boston.
UPDATE: 3:02 p.m. ET: The Boston Red Sox have postponed tonight's scheduled game against the Kansas City Royals. The game was highly anticipated as it would have been the first Sox game played at Boston's Fenway Park since Monday's attack.
UPDATE: 3:16 p.m ET: The Boston Bruins have now also postponed their scheduled game tonight.
UPDATE: 3:34 p.m. ET: The FBI has removed a computer from the New Jersey home of a sister of the Boston bombing suspects, according to NBC. Authorities had met with and interviewed her earlier in the day, but gave no indication that she was a suspect.
UPDATE: 3:49 p.m. ET: Authorities have revealed more information about the explosives allegedly tossed at police last night in a skirmish with the suspected Boston bombers. Police say they've recovered a pressure cooker bomb — the same type of explosive believed to have been used in the marathon bombing — from the overnight crime scene, and that they've found numerous other improvised explosives at the suspects' house.
UPDATE: 3:52 p.m. ET: Police have recovered the second vehicle they'd sought in connection with the ongoing manhunt, per the Boston Police Department.
UPDATE: 3:56 p.m. ET: According to CBS News, the robbery at a Cambridge, Mass. 7/11 Thursday night, initially believed to be linked to the manhunt for the Boston bombers, is unrelated.
UPDATE: 4:07 p.m. ET: The New Yorker has released a preview of the cover for their next issue, "Shadow Over Boston."
UPDATE: 4:16 p.m. ET: Police have recovered seven improvised explosives from the overnight gun fight between law enforcement and the marathon boming suspects, according tot NBC Nightly News:
UPDATE: 4:51 p.m. ET: According to the Boston Globe, police confirmed to the paper that Dzhokar Tsarnaev, who is still on the run, drove over his wounded brother's body as he fled from police. That fact had previously been speculated, but had not been confirmed by authorities until now.
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.