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New York Bombing: A Number Of Persons Of Interest Reportedly In Custody Following Saturday Explosion [Breaking]

By Patricia Ramirez
Published on: 18:40 PST, Sep 18, 2016

New developments in the New York bombing incident that took place on Saturday are being reported late Sunday night. After roughly 24 hours of a multi-department investigation into the blast in the Chelsea neighborhood of New York that left 29 injured, it appears that federal authorities may have a break in the case.

Fox News is reporting that federal agents pulled over a “vehicle of interest” late Sunday. The vehicle in question is reportedly connected to the New York bombing, possibly one that was caught on one of the many surveillance videos from the area in question. Reportedly, federal authorities have taken several individuals into custody, and they believe that those people could be connected to the bombing that took place Saturday in New York.

Earlier on Sunday, it was reported that multiple agencies were pouring over surveillance videos that could provide clues into the identity of the bomber or bombers that carried out the New York bombing. It had been reported by several news agencies that at least one surveillance video placed one person of interest at the scene of the Chelsea explosion as well as at a second scene, where a possibly connected “pressure cooker device” was located a few blocks away.

As Fox News reports, two unidentified law enforcement officials have come forward on the condition of anonymity to let the media know that no fewer than five persons of interest in the New York bombing case have been taken into federal custody and are being questioned as of late Sunday into early Monday. Reportedly, the law enforcement sources are not authorized to go on the record with this information.

The FBI has officially stated that the investigation into the New York bombing is a fluid and ongoing one, and that nobody has been officially charged in connection with the devastating incident.

The reports of multiple men being questioned in connection with the New York bombing that took place on Saturday is just the latest in a string of breaking news related to possible terrorist attacks in the United States over the weekend.

On Saturday, in addition to the bombing in Chelsea, New York, that left dozens injured, another explosion was reported at a Marine Corps “fun run” event in New Jersey. Nobody was hurt in that blast.

In Minnesota, and also on Saturday, a terrifying mass stabbing was reported at a shopping mall. In that bloody attack, nine people suffered injuries with at least one victim being grievously wounded. Law enforcement who responded to the Minnesota mall stabbing shot and killed the knife-wielding attacker, an attacker who reportedly yelled radical Islamic propaganda at his victims and witnesses.

On Sunday, it was widely reported that the Minnesota mall stabbing was directly affiliated with ISIS.

In the case of the New York bombing, police have also been investigating a pressure cooker “bomb” that was found unexploded a few blocks away from the scene of the bombing carnage. The pressure cooker bomb, which authorities believe may be directly connected to Saturday’s New York bombing, was reportedly very similar in nature to the pressure cooker bombs that caused such devastation in the Boston Marathon terror attack a few years back.

On Sunday, Fox News reports that another explosion was reported in a New Jersey train station. In that incident, which was first reported at about 9:30 p.m. local time by concerned residents who saw a suspicious device near a trash can, transport was halted for hours.

It is unclear whether or not Sunday’s New Jersey incident is related to the events Saturday, including the New York bombing. There are also conflicting reports of what actually initiated the New Jersey explosion. Some officials, speaking on behalf of Mayor Christian Bollwage, have said that the bomb was a controlled explosion carried out by the Union County bomb squad.

Mayor Bollwage himself, however, disputed those claims. He said that the explosion wasn’t controlled, and the “suspicious devices” found by the bomb squad could have “certainly killed or injured many.”

As a result of the widespread incidents that have taken place across the U.S. this weekend, New York Mayor de Blasio said during a press conference that security throughout New York would be beefed up beginning immediately. Particularly because the New York bombing incident took place just as United Nations General Assembly week is beginning.

“Now for all New Yorkers, a central message we want to give today is be vigilant. Be vigilant at this point in time, not just because of this incident, be vigilant because we’re going into United Nations General Assembly week.”

It has been reported that in addition to an expanded and obvious police presence in response to the New York bombing, National Guard troops will also be helping to keep the city secure in the wake of what Governor Andrew Cuomo has referred to as a terrorist attack in New York City.

“A bomb exploding in New York is obviously an act of terrorism. A bomb going off is generically a terrorist activity. That’s how we’ll consider it. And that’s how we will prosecute it.”

At this point, in the wake of the Saturday bombing and other possibly connected events, residents of and visitors to New York should be aware of an expanded law enforcement presence as well as be on the lookout for suspicious activity.

[Featured Image by Andres Kudacki/AP Photo]

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