Suspect in US Boston Marathon bombings dead after shootout; second still at large, believed to be dangerous, police say
(CNN) Violence terrorized
Bostonians overnight, and police believe two suspects involved could be
the same men who allegedly planted bombs that killed three in the
Boston Marathon Monday.
One was shot dead early Friday, and the other is still on the loose, authorities said.
One of the men, "suspect
number 2" in Monday's bombing, is still at large in the Boston suburb of
Watertown, where dozens of officers from local, state and federal law
enforcement agencies have fanned out to track him down, said transit
police spokesman Paul MacMillan.
He is believed to be
armed and dangerous. Police warned residents to lock their homes and
stay away from their windows and doors.
A surveillance camera
image of the man strongly resembles photos of one of the suspects
authorities are seeking for his alleged involvement in the marathon
attacks that killed three.
The other suspect was
shot in an exchange of gunfire with transit police and later pronounced
dead at a local hospital, according to a statement from the
Massachusetts district attorney.
Police believe he could be suspect number 1 in the marathon attack.
Original story below posted: [Posted 4:05 a.m.]
Two violent incidents
kept Bostonians on edge over night, just days after the bombing of the
iconic Boston Marathon. It started with the shooting death of a college
police officer Thursday night and ended with a carjacking that may have
involved explosives early Friday.
Police believe at least one suspect used explosives against their officers in the second incident.
Howling sirens pierced
the night quiet, and flashing lights lit up the darkness, as dozens of
officers from state and city police responded to the deadly shooting on
the campus of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge.
Hardly an hour later, they were chasing at least one suspect in a
hijacked vehicle less than five miles away.
Police cornered the
vehicle in the suburb of Watertown and arrested a suspect. He may have
used explosives in the futile attempt to elude police, police spokesman
Dave Procopio told CNN.
Massive police operation in Watertown
CNN photographer Gabe Ramirez arrived in Watertown as the chase ended.
Two suspects, one stripped down
"Police were in a
standoff with the vehicle just down the hill," Ramirez said. They
ordered one suspect out and commanded him to strip down completely naked
before putting him in a patrol car, which did not leave the scene.
FBI agents approached
the squad car, and police ordered the suspect back out of the car. FBI
agents questioned him -- still fully undressed -- on the sidewalk.
Later, police lead the man in handcuffs to a patrol car.
Officers quickly locked
down the streets of the Watertown neighborhood after isolating the
vehicle. The Boston Police Department said in a statement that they
consider the incident to be still active and ask that residents remain
in their homes.
Police carrying assault rifles ran down the streets, according to CNN affiliate WCVB, which broadcast images from the area.
In an early phase of the
lock down, a man could be seen lying face down on the street in a
surrender pose with his hands outstretched in front of him and his legs
crossed. It is unclear if he was the suspect arrested.
Explosives once more
Police requested that people in the area turn off their cell phones.
CNN Senior producer
David Fitzpatrick reported hearing a loud bang Friday morning in
Watertown after the police had stopped the vehicle, but police have not
confirmed an explosion.
Dozens of police from
various units arrived in Watertown, some in SWAT uniforms, others
wearing helmets. Large crowds gathered around a trove of emergency
vehicles that had congregated in the neighborhood, WCVB reported.
Homeland Security
Investigations has deployed agents to Watertown to try to determine if
there is a connection between the Marathon bombing Monday and tonight's
violence, a Homeland Security spokesman told CNN.
Police also said they were going door to door, street by street, searching the Watertown area.
It is still unclear if
the arrest in Watertown was related to the shooting on the MIT campus or
any other incident in the Boston area.
Residents in the area
have been on edge after two bombs ripped through the crowd near the
finish line of the Boston Marathon, killing three people and injuring
178 others.
Federal, state and local
agencies are still investigating the marathon bombing, and police were
seeking two suspects in the attack, who were still at large.
How the night erupted
The mayhem began, after a
university police officer died in a shooting on the Massachusetts
Institute of Technology campus in Cambridge late Thursday, state police
spokesman Lt. Mark Riley said.
The MIT officer was
responding to a disturbance when he was fired upon, according to the
state district attorney's office. He sustained "multiple gunshot
wounds."
State police and the FBI
were called in after the shooting and found the campus policeman near
Building 32 on MIT's campus. He was taken to Massachusetts General
Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, the district attorney's office
said.
The university issued a
statement of condolence. "MIT is heartbroken by the news that an MIT
Police officer was shot and killed in the line of duty," it read.
Dozens of officers
surrounded and cordoned off the building, known as the Stata Center,
which houses computer science laboratories as well as the department of
linguistics and philosophy, according to MIT's website.
The university, which
lies adjacent to the city of Boston, had requested people stay away from
the building, but have since said the campus is safe and that the
suspect is no longer present.
Students and faculty received e-mails to alert them to the event, CNN affiliate WCVB reported.
Many news media outlets
are in the area covering the investigation into Monday's bombings and
arrived at MIT to cover the shooting, WCVB reported.
Within an hour, police were called to respond to the carjacking, which lead them on the chase through Watertown.
