Car bomb in Time Square

[Magda Hassan]

I'll probably be moving this to Black Operations sooon enough but for now I'll leave it here. I wonder if the CCTV cameras were working or not that day?


Breaking: 'Essentially, an IED was found.' License plates did not match the SUV but instead matched a Ford.
FBI, Joint Terrorism Task Force involved. Three propane tanks, black powder, timing device found in SUV.
People getting pushed 'even further back,' many more 'boots on the ground' on the scene in NYC. (MSNBC)

The police discovered a car bomb in a smoking Nissan Pathfinder in the heart of Times Square Saturday evening, prompting the evacuation of thousands of tourists and theatergoers from the area on a warm and busy Saturday evening, the police said.
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Cary Conover for The New York Times

Crowds were lined up on the south side of 43rd Street as the heart of Times Square was closed off to traffic.


There was no explosion.
“It appears to be a car bomb left in a Pathfinder between Seventh and Eighth” Avenues on 45th Street, said Deputy Commissioner Paul J. Browne, the Police Department’s chief spokesman.
The device, he said, contained “explosive elements” that included “propane tanks, some kind of powder, gasoline and a timing device.”
“This is very much an active investigation,” he said.
The police would not say whether they had any suspects, and did not say if they had determined what might have been behind the event.
A federal official said it was not considered it a terrorist threat and that the New York Police Department had told the Department of Homeland Security to stand down. The official would not say why he believed that or what the New York Police Department told them about the episode.
The explosive materials were discovered about 6:30 by a mounted police officer who saw a box with smoke pouring from it in the back of the Pathfinder, Mr. Browne said. The officer called for backup, and the Fire Department and bomb squad.
The Pathfinder’s back window was broken out, Mr. Browne said, and the police sent in a “robotic device” to “observe it.”
The police began evacuating Times Square, starting with businesses along Seventh Avenue, including a Foot Locker store and a McDonald’s restaurant.
Kevin B. Barry, a former supervisor in the New York Police Department bomb squad, said he was told it was an improvised explosive device. But somehow, he said, the ignition source “failed to function the main charge.”
Mr. Barry said the material appeared to include two 20-pound cylinders of propane. If it had functioned, he speculated, “it would be more of an incendiary event” than an explosion.
Times Square on a Saturday night is one of the busiest and most populated locations in the city, and has long been seen as a likely target for some kind of attack. Upon discovering the vehicle, the police closed Broadway between at least 43rd and 46th Streets, and also appeared to close off part of Eighth Avenue.
Many people stayed to watch after being shut out of Broadway shows or prevented from getting back to their hotels, trading rumors about what was happening. It appeared that some theaters might have been evacuated. The giant Toys “R” Us store, between 44th and 45th Streets, was empty.
Onlookers crowded against the metal barricades encircling the area, taking pictures with cellphones and video cameras, although only a swarm of flashing fire trucks and police cars was visible.
Gabrielle Zecha and Taj Heniser, visiting from Seattle, had tickets to see “Next to Normal” at the Booth Theater on 45th Street but could not get into the 8 p.m. show because the area was blocked off. But they made the best of the spectacle. “It’s a whole different kind of show,” Ms. Heniser said, adding, “It’s almost the equivalent of a $150 show.”
A group of people on a high school senior trip from Jacksonville, Fla., said they were stuck for about an hour and a half in the Bubba Gump restaurant at 44th Street and Seventh Avenue.
“A lot of people were getting tense who were there longer than we were,” said Billy Wilkerson, 39, a police sergeant in Jacksonville and a chaperone for the trip. “It’s so good to get out, but it was exhilarating.”
He said he was impressed by his New York counterparts. “I just sat back and learned a lot,” he said.
Priscilla Garner, 17, said she enjoyed the experience. “I got free ice cream, they gave us crayons to color with,” she said.
Fabyane Pereira, 35, a tourist from Brazil, said the episode would not deter her from another visit. “I feel sorry for America,” she said. “I’m at your guys’ side.”
In the initial hours of the investigation, much remained unclear. The license plates on the Nissan were registered to another vehicle, the police said.
A New York City firefighter who told Reuters he arrived early on the scene said that the vehicle was smoking and that he saw “a flash” from the back of the it. “We put two and two together” and the evacuation was ordered, he said.
In December, the police closed Times Square for nearly two hours as they investigated a suspiciously parked van, delaying the rehearsal of the New Year’s ball drop. However, the van turned out to contain nothing but clothing.
Reporting was contributed by Micah Cohen, Steve Kenny and Ray Rivera in New York and Eric Lipton in Washington.

Times Square Is Evacuated in Bomb Scare 01 May 2010 A suspicious vehicle in the heart of Times Square led the police to clear thousands of tourists and theatergoers from the area on a warm and busy Saturday evening. There was no explosion. Police officials said a witness reported a running Nissan Pathfinder with Connecticut plates, with smoke coming out of the back. A bomb squad robot popped the back latch of the Pathfinder, and officers found what they initially believed was a bomb. The vehicle was found to contain explosives, gasoline, propane and burned wires, a Fire Department officer told Reuters.

[Charles Drago]

The biggest Broadway bomb since "Kelly."

[Magda Hassan]

Seems there is some video footage of a suspect. He is 'white' for now but for sure it will be all Al Qaida's fault. Am I the only one that doesn't find the described behaviour 'suspicious'?

New York (CNN) -- Law enforcement officials are examining video that may have captured the image of a suspect in the attempted Times Square car bombing, New York's police commissioner said Sunday.
The video "shows a white male in his 40s, in Shubert Alley, looking back in the direction of West 45th Street," Commissioner Ray Kelly told a news conference, adding that the man looked around in a "furtive manner."
"He also was seen shedding a dark-colored shirt, revealing a red one underneath. He put the darker one into a bag that he was carrying," he said.
The video was captured about a half block from where police said a Nissan Pathfinder containing bomb-making materials was found Saturday evening on West 45th Street in the city's iconic Times Square area.

Video: Bomb 'could have caused fireball'

Video: Obama on NYC: 'See that justice is done'

Video: NYPD: What was inside SUV

Video: 'Like a hand grenade in the car'

NYC car bomb: What happened?

The police also have a videotape from a Pennsylvania tourist who believes he may have caught the suspect's image on camera, according to Deputy Police Commissioner Paul Browne.
iReport: Were you there? Share pics, videos
Also Sunday, Kelly said an NYPD bomb squad blew open a large gun locker found in the Pathfinder, revealing eight bags of an "unknown substance" and a pressure-cooker-type metal pot containing a "bird's nest of wires and M-88 firecrackers."
Preliminary tests later determined the substance to be "non-explosive grade fertilizer incapable of blowing up," according to Browne.
The gun locker was one of many items found in the rear of the Pathfinder after a T-shirt vendor alerted a nearby police officer to smoke coming out of the vehicle.
Officials removed from the SUV three propane tanks weighing between 15 and 17 pounds, Kelly said, comparing them to the kind typically used on backyard barbecues. One of the tanks had more M-88 firecrackers attached to the side, Kelly said, some of which detonated inside the vehicle.
Also found in the vehicle's back seat were two full five-gallon gasoline containers, Kelly said. And between those gasoline containers was a "16-ounce can filled with between 20 and 30 M-88 devices," he said, adding that two clocks on the floor of the vehicle's back seat were connected by wires to the can containing the firecrackers, and possibly to the gun locker as well.
Read more about the discovery of the car bomb
Had the car bomb detonated, Kelly said it would have caused casualties and a "significant fireball."
"I'm told the vehicle itself would have at least been cut in half," he said. "You have large numbers of pedestrians in that area, so, yeah, we were lucky that it didn't detonate."
Browne added that the materials found were "capable of producing human casualties and broken windows," but did not have enough force "to take down a structure, in the opinion of NYPD bomb experts."
Officials did not immediately know how the bomb would have been detonated, but Kelly offered a few hints into its design.



"(We believe) the timers would ignite the can of explosives and that would cause the five-gallon cans (of gasoline) to go on fire and then explode the propane tanks and have some effect on that rifle box," Kelly said.
Times Square evacuation captured on iPhone
Meanwhile, Times Square returned to its bustling self Sunday, even as questions remained about the source of the attempted car bombing.
In a purported Pakistani Taliban video that surfaced on the internet Sunday, the group took responsibility for the foiled attack, though Kelly said Sunday afternoon that "we have no evidence to support this claim."
The group, Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, says in the video that the attack was revenge for their leaders killed by American forces, and for U.S. and NATO interference in that part of the world.
Another claim of responsibility e-mailed by an individual to a local New York news station is being investigated, Kelly said.
Kelly called the foiled attack "a sober reminder that New York is clearly a target of people who want to come here and do us harm."
President Obama, speaking from Venice, Louisiana, where he was monitoring a massive oil slick creeping toward the Gulf Coast, promised "to see that justice is done" in the failed car bombing.
"Since last night, my national security teams have been taking every step necessary to ensure that our state and local partners have the full support and cooperation of the federal government," he said. "We're going to do what's necessary to protect the American people, to determine who's behind this potentially deadly act and to see that justice is done."
In an advisory sent to local and national law enforcement, the Department of Homeland Security wrote, "There is no information to indicate that this was anything more than a single incident. Additionally, there is no reporting suggesting targeting of other specific locations."
Kelly said following the discovery of the Pathfinder, police officers did a search for secondary devices in the area and found none.
The investigation was focusing on examinations of the Nissan Pathfinder where the attempted homemade bomb was placed. Kelly said the vehicle is being combed for fingerprints, hair, fibers and other evidence that may help identify who was responsible, and hours of surveillance footage in the area were being monitored for possible clues.
Another angle of the investigation involved the license plates found on the vehicle.
Authorities said that the Connecticut license plate on the front of Pathfinder did not belong to that car, but to a pickup truck that was last reported at a junkyard.
Following that lead, police were spotted at an automobile used parts company, Kramer's Used Auto Parts of Stratford, Connecticut.
Kelly said that the plate found on the rear of the Pathfinder was also registered to a different vehicle, which was located in an auto repair shop in Connecticut, where its matching plate was also found.
The Pathfinder's vehicle identification number had been removed from the dashboard, but officials recovered it from another location on the car, a federal law enforcement official told CNN.
Kelly said officials have identified the registered owner of the Pathfinder, but were not yet making his name public.
A New York police official told CNN the owner lives in the Tri-state area of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut.
The lockdown of the popular New York attraction began around 6:30 p.m. Saturday after a T-shirt vendor -- a Vietnam veteran -- saw the SUV, found it suspicious and alerted a mounted police officer.
Officer Wayne Rhatigan peered inside and noticed a box with smoke coming out and smelled gunpowder. Authorities immediately evacuated the area.
Watch police evacuate McDonald's: 'Pack your food up! Let's go!'
Rhatigan, a 19-year NYPD veteran, and vendor Lance Orton were called "heroes" by New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg on Sunday.
"We're very lucky that people like Wayne and ... Lance Orton saw something and did something about it, and that's what we all have to do," Bloomberg said outside Blue Fin restaurant in Times Square, where he later dined with Rhatigan in a show of the safety around the area.
"There are some people around the world that find our freedoms so threatening that they're willing to kill themselves and others to prevent us from enjoying it, but we're not going to let them win," Bloomberg said.
Rhatigan said that after smelling the gunpowder he thought, "Uh oh, this is a little bit more than just a parked car and a cigarette in the ashtray."
He said that despite the potential danger, there wasn't time to be scared as he and other officers sought to set up a perimeter and evacuate passers-by.
"It's what we do, this is our job," Rhatigan, 46, said outside the restaurant.

[Keith Millea]

Also Sunday, Kelly said an NYPD bomb squad blew open a large gun locker found in the Pathfinder, revealing eight bags of an "unknown substance" and a pressure-cooker-type metal pot containing a "bird's nest of wires and M-88 firecrackers."
Preliminary tests later determined the substance to be "non-explosive grade fertilizer incapable of blowing up," according to Browne.
The gun locker was one of many items found in the rear of the Pathfinder after a T-shirt vendor alerted a nearby police officer to smoke coming out of the vehicle.
Officials removed from the SUV three propane tanks weighing between 15 and 17 pounds, Kelly said, comparing them to the kind typically used on backyard barbecues. One of the tanks had more M-88 firecrackers attached to the side, Kelly said, some of which detonated inside the vehicle.
Also found in the vehicle's back seat were two full five-gallon gasoline containers, Kelly said. And between those gasoline containers was a "16-ounce can filled with between 20 and 30 M-88 devices," he said, adding that two clocks on the floor of the vehicle's back seat were connected by wires to the can containing the firecrackers, and possibly to the gun locker as well.

Another sophisticated BUBBA BOMB.What a friggin' joke.....:heeeelllllooooo:

[Ed Jewett]

An AP report coming in from SITE ...:
http://m.apnews.com/ap/db_8559/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=zbUj1Jmm

And Reuters...
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/LDE6410H5.htm

Citizens for Legitimate Government has had multiple reports...
http://www.legitgov.org/

Gordon Duff has a "take"...
http://mycatbirdseat.com/2010/05/gordon-...%99s-hand/

[Peter Lemkin]

Also Sunday, Kelly said an NYPD bomb squad blew open a large gun locker found in the Pathfinder, revealing eight bags of an "unknown substance" and a pressure-cooker-type metal pot containing a "bird's nest of wires and M-88 firecrackers."
Preliminary tests later determined the substance to be "non-explosive grade fertilizer incapable of blowing up," according to Browne.
The gun locker was one of many items found in the rear of the Pathfinder after a T-shirt vendor alerted a nearby police officer to smoke coming out of the vehicle.
Officials removed from the SUV three propane tanks weighing between 15 and 17 pounds, Kelly said, comparing them to the kind typically used on backyard barbecues. One of the tanks had more M-88 firecrackers attached to the side, Kelly said, some of which detonated inside the vehicle.
Also found in the vehicle's back seat were two full five-gallon gasoline containers, Kelly said. And between those gasoline containers was a "16-ounce can filled with between 20 and 30 M-88 devices," he said, adding that two clocks on the floor of the vehicle's back seat were connected by wires to the can containing the firecrackers, and possibly to the gun locker as well.

Another sophisticated BUBBA BOMB.What a friggin' joke.....:heeeelllllooooo:

The part I like best was the car had its emergency flasher lights on and smoke coming out of it.....a real slick 'bomber/terrorist built this one!.....:alberteinstein: A Rube Goldberg bomb, for sure.....only question left is if the 'powers that be' or some crank wanted to raise the fear level a bit....

[Paul Rigby]

Letter to the editor, New York Times:

Sir,

Where is a cryogenically-suspended Arab patsy when you need one?

In a Langley fridge, most likely.

I look forward to meeting the one responsible for this latest outrage in Noo York.

I remain your obedient servant,

Sir Buxton Strobe-Thribble,
President, Gloved digits across the Atlantic.

[Paul Rigby]

Letter to the editor, New York Times:

Sir,

Where is a cryogenically-suspended Arab patsy when you need one?

In a Langley fridge, most likely.

I look forward to meeting the one responsible for this latest outrage in Noo York.

I remain your obedient servant,

Sir Buxton Strobe-Thribble,
President, Gloved digits across the Atlantic.

NYT corrections and prophecies page:

Sir,

Following the telephonic intervention of that most distinguished parliamentarian, the very Reverend Anthony Blair, it has become clear to me that my previous communication on this subject contained a quite appalling error.

Please substitute "Persian" for "Arab" as a matter of some financial urgency.

It almost goes without saying that I reserve the right to substitute "deranged indigenous white supremacist" for "Persian" should the need arise.

There, that should cover all bases for the moment.

I remain your obedient servant in the War on Terror etc.,

Sir Buxton Strobe-Thribble,
President, Rent-a-Patsy Inc., the firm that gives you 7/7 scapegoat coverage

[Paul Rigby]

The Editor, the Old Grey Lady:

Sir,

This whole correspondence has turned into a complete nightmare. A piece of honest-to-goodness, self-interested, reflexive sycophancy has been entirely misconstrued.

I have just received a stern rebuke from a very charming State Department official - of long Oxford acquaintance and no little diplomatic heft - to the effect that I have been working from “an expired propaganda functionality matrix.”

I have no idea what any of this means, but I was left in no doubt that this was unquestionably “a bad thing,” one which threatens to culminate in the ultimate atrocity – to wit, the termination of my annual thick brown envelope from Uncle Sam’s trench coat mafia.

I therefore propose you ignore everything I have ever written on the subject of the CIA drill which recently took place, under controlled conditions and with considerable precision, in New York. These wonderful men – particularly the women – who serve America with such unfailing patriotism and dedication have been subject to a gross calumny by ill-informed foreign observers, not least me.

I have retired to my chastened rural seat for the duration of the forthcoming well-hung parliament.

A grovellingly penitent

Sir Buxton Strobe-Thribble, MP,
Chairman, Parliamentary Committee on Intelligence Oversight.

[Paul Rigby]

Barking MP: Send me to America, now!

Exclusive to the NYT and every other American newspaper

Veteran MP and former diplomatist Sir Buxton Strobe-Thribble (Con., Essex) today demanded his own immediate rendition to the US for “crimes against imperial propaganda.” In a remarkable interview with Rita Totty, presenter of Sky News’ “38DD,” Westminster’s only 3D politics programme, Strobe-Thribble demanded to go the same way as “the Natwest ménage et trois, or whatever they were called.”

Wearing a borrowed orange boiler suite, and some erratically applied mascara, a tired and emotional Strobe-Thribble openly wept as he repeatedly demanded to be paraded through the streets of Washington DC naked, chained and scourged. “It’s the only way with hardened recidivists like me,” he sobbed. “All I ask for is a prison cell brutally controlled by a psychotic & capricious negro sodomite, preferably one with a Mau Mau background. That,” he added, “and a solitary reminder of Eton – my house tie.”

Asked by Totty what he would do if David Cameroon failed to obtain an overall majority, and could not appoint him the next British Ambassador to Washington, Strobe-Thribble railed against the cosmic injustice of it all. “Is it my fault I know no one who went to lowly Westminster School? All these years I’ve had to play a Greek, when all I’ve ever wanted was to be a Roman. Let me play among the Roman Gods if only for one term!”

Foreign Office sauces agree that Strobe-Thribble remains, like his fellow Eton old boy Cameroon, the overwhelming favourite, but that all bets are off in the event of a hung parliament. Lib Dem Nick Clogg’s team are widely held to favour rival Sir Anthony Footstool, described by one admirer as “even more ludicrously vain, pompous and right-wing than Sir Christopher Polyp-Meyer,” who effortlessly achieved his publicly expressed goal of “getting up the jacksey of Washington’s leading neo-cons and staying there.” Polyp-Meyer continues to preside over the Press Complaints Committee from an office deep within Dick Cheney’s colony, the Pentagon.

In Washington, reaction to Strobe-Thribble’s interview was muted. “Offensive on every level? Yes,” commented State Department spokeswoman Valerie Flame. “But look at the upside: He’s stupid, racist, greedy, cowardly and malleable. We know the Foreign Office type well; and it’s a type we have used to the considerable benefit of America Inc. for a very long time. So there’ll be no ‘Leggit’ against S-T from the SD!”