Breaking: Explosion Reported at Boston Marathon's Finish Line

[Magda Hassan]

Hunt for the man in black: Feds raid apartment in search for 'dark-skinned male' as Saudi suspect is under guard in hospital... but were Boston blasts the work of right-wing extremists?

• Bomb squad among 20 officers combing flat, bags of evidence removed
  
• Police swooped after arresting man driving erratically around police barrack
  
• Speculation mounts over who could be behind the attack that left three dead
  
• Fingers point towards Islamic militants, who have attacked America before
  
• But apparent lack of suicide bomber could suggest domestic attacker
  

By Katie Davies and Matt Blake
PUBLISHED: 20:40 GMT, 15 April 2013 | UPDATED: 09:34 GMT, 16 April 2013

Detectives investigating the double bombing that tore through crowds at the Boston Marathon swooped on a flat yesterday amid claims the attack had hints of a right-wing terrorist attack rather than al Qaeda-inspired extremism.

Around 20 police and federal officials, including members of the bomb squad, combed the apartment in the suburb of Revere after questioning a man spotted driving erratically around state police barracks around the time of the blasts.

They are also hunting a mysterious 'man in black' who was seen loitering suspiciously in the area and tried to gain access to a restricted compound but was turned away moments before the blast.
While there were no immediate claims of responsibility, speculation is mounting over who could be behind the attack which left three people dead, including an eight-year-old boy, and injured 144.
Al Qaeda and affiliate terrorist cells have unleashed attacks on America in the past, but the apparent lack of a suicide bomber has triggered claims it could as likely be a domestic radical, perhaps from a far-right extremist group.
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Evacuation: Police were desperately trying to evacuate the area following the explosions



Pictured: Images of a man in cuffs were posted online but police were keen to underline there had been no arrests. Officers said they were speaking to several people as would be expected in any major incident


Bill Bratton, a former head of Boston police who is now based in London, told Sky News: 'Unfortunately in my country there are no shortage of potential suspects, if you will.'


Counter terrorism expert Rick Nelson, of the Center for Strategic & International Studies, said the number of co-ordinated blasts suggested a 'complexity' that would be difficult for an individual to carry out alone.


'It was perhaps not one person but a group who were involved,' he said. 'The location suggests they were looking for maximum media value so that the explosions were caught by television cameras.'
Detectives were led to the Revere apartment, which is five miles from downtown Boston, after officers noticed a man driving erratically near the scene and pulled him over telling WBZ-TV he displayed a 'nervous demeanor'.

'Crude bombs': Both of the bombs were small, likely homemade devices and initial tests showed no C-4 or other high-grade explosive material


Moments after: Smoke billows from near the finish line after the bomb was detonated, inflicting tragedy


Massachusetts General Hospital, where 22 victims of the bomb blast are being treated, was locked down for two hours after a suspicious package was reported in the parking garage across the street

The driver then led police, as well as the FBI, to a home in the area of Ocean Avenue and Beach Street - which was then descended upon by Boston Police K-9 units, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, as well as Homeland Security investigations around 5.30pm.

A source confirmed that the large police presence at the home in Revere was related to the Boston Marathon bombings.
Boston Police Crime Scene Response unit arrived and two members of that unit took several brown paper bags, normally used to store evidence taken from the scene, into the building and left with them full afterwards.
Police had said earlier Monday that they were searching for a 'dark-skinned or black male' wearing a dark-colored hooded sweatshirt and a backpack in connection with the twin explosions, which killed three people and injured at least 141.

They did not say whether the person they pulled over matched that description.
The hooded suspect was spotted at the scene of the twin explosions at the Boston Marathon finish line wearing a black sweatshirt with a hood, according to authorities.
Five minutes before the first explosion, officials said the person attempted to gain entry to a restricted area and was turned away. Authorities say he may be a foreign national, based on his accent.
Another potential suspect questioned by police at an area hospital Monday afternoon. Several news outlets reported that he is a 20-year-old Saudi national in the country on a student visa.
The person was among dozens injured - at least two fatally - by the blasts and he was being treated at Tufts Medical Center in Boston.

A civilian at the scene of the blasts claimed the student was acting suspiciously and reportedly chased him down and tackled him.
Authorities were still denying around 9 p.m. Monday that they had any definitive suspects in custody. They said they were questioning several people Monday but had not yet labeled anyone a suspect.

Pictures of a man in handcuffs surrounded by law enforcement officials circulated Twitter Monday, but authorities didn't identify the man or say whether his arrest was related to the blasts.
'At this time, we haven't been notified of any arrests or anyone apprehended,' a police spokesperson said.
Other reports suggested one line of inquiry was an individual caught on camera before the attack carrying multiple backpacks into the area 20 minutes before the deadly blasts.

It came as police were believed to be looking at whether bombs were planted in trashcans along the route.

The two blasts Monday occurred almost concurrently near the finish line of the marathon.

Police initially said a third blast occurred at the John F.Kennedy Presidential Library but later reported it as an unrelated fire.
Cell phone service was shut down across the area to prevent any potential remote detonations as police feared there were secondary devices.

Police were in a desperate race against time to find any additional devices this afternoon and said the task had been complicated by the items discarded by spectators fleeing the scene.


Multiple reports were flooding in in the moments after the attack saying there were devices reported outside Harvard and other sites along the marathon route.

Massachusetts General Hospital, where 22 victims of the bomb blast are being treated, was forced into lock-down for about two hours after a suspicious package was reported in the parking garage across the street.
Bomb sniffing dogs from the Rhode Island State Police, SWAT officers from the Boston police department and bomb squad officers searched the entire parking structure, floor-by-floor.

Authorities found one bag, but determined it was not a threat and contained nothing suspicious.
As the investigation continued into Monday night, all off-duty officers in the city were called back on duty and dog units were sent in to help the emergency response.
The scene of the blasts will remain cordoned off for at least 24 hours as forensic work continues.

Police were pleading with onlookers to head home over fears the dangers remained in the downtown area of the city.

NBC reported that the devices which caused the blasts were small homemade bombs' as the FBI referred it as a terrorist attack'.
Police departments across the country including San Francisco and New York have been put on heightened alert.

Controlled explosions: Officers were said to be carrying out controlled explosions on three secondary device

In London security will now be assessed ahead of the marathon being held there on Sunday.
A no-fly zone was temporarily introduced over the city and has now been lifted.
Runners still on the course were being bussed out this afternoon as officers begun the hard task of trying to work out who would cause such an attack.
Early indications suggested the bombs were planted at the finish line rather than being suicide attacks.

U.S. President Barack Obama was notified and directed his administration to provide whatever assistance was necessary, the White House said.
No groups have claimed credit for the attack and officials say no intelligence alerted them to a threat prior to the marathon.

Anyone with information about the explosions should call 1800-494-TIPS.


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