On April 15, two bombs exploded at the finish line of the Boston Marathon, killing three people and injuring 264. After several days with a city on edge and police on the hunt, brothers Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev allegedly took the life of a police officer before leading authorities on a chase through the outskirts of the city. The older brother, Tamerlan, was killed and Dzhokhar was nabbed the next day hiding underneath the tarp of a boat. As more is revealed about the family, their ties to the Caucasus region, and the brothers' extremist views, officials are delving into how they fell through the national security cracks and whether they had outside help in staging the attack. Russia tipped off U.S. authorities to Tamerlan Tsarnaev in 2011, but FBI officials likely regarded the tip with some suspicion as Moscow has been known to target human rights activists and political opponents. They cleared him after an interview process but still had tabs on him as he left the country for the Caucasus region in 2012.
An update on the case from ABC News:
Accused Boston Marathon bomber Tamerlan Tsarnaev may have been in touch with suspected militants before and during his visit last year to southern Russia, according to a U.S. official and sources in the region.
American officials are investigating whether Tsarnaev had been in contact over the internet with a man named William Plotnikov, a Russian-Canadian and a fellow boxer, who had converted to Islam and joined the militant insurgency in the North Caucasus. Authorities also want to know what Tsarnaev was doing with a known militant recruiter in the region named Mansur Mukhamed Nidal with whom Tsarnaev was repeatedly seen leaving a controversial mosque in Makhachkala, the capital of Dagestan.
The new leads come as the FBI's investigation into the deadly April 15 bombing at the Boston Marathon continues to expand and follows the discovery of female DNA on one of the bombs, according to government sources. The sources said it is unclear whether the DNA was from a victim of the attack, from someone who handled components of the bomb before it was assembled or from a possible co-conspirator of the suspected Tsarnaev brothers.
In addition to identifying the woman in question, people briefed on the case said the FBI reportedly is now seeking information on almost a dozen persons of interest.
Uncovering the Facts in the Boston Bombing originally appeared on About.com World News on Tuesday, April 30th, 2013 at 19:08:14.
