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After two explosions rocked New York City and New Jersey over the weekend, details have gradually emerged. Here's what you need to know, including that the suspect was captured by police on Monday.
1. There were two explosions in Seaside, NJ, and NYC's Chelsea neighborhood.
A bomb was detonated on the evening of Sept. 17 in New York City's Chelsea neighborhood, [1] injuring 29 people, reports The New York Times. Earlier that day, a bomb exploded at a charity race in New Jersey's shore with no injuries. Investigators believe that the attacks are connected. The bombs were made from pressure cookers and filled with shrapnel. A photo of one of the undetonated devices circulated on social media, and police confirmed its veracity.
BREAKING PHOTO! Here is the second device found by a NYSP Sgt. At 27 street and 7 Ave. investigation is ongoing pic.twitter.com/x7o9Rr30I3 [2]
— New York City Alerts (@NYCityAlerts) September 18, 2016 [3]
2. More explosive devices were found in the surrounding areas.
The FBI found additional pipe bombs in Elizabeth, NJ, and in New York City. Two men discovered a backpack with explosives on Sept. 18 at a train station in Elizabeth and alerted police after they looked into the bag thinking it would be filled with valuables. Instead, the backpack was filled with five pipe bombs, according to The Times. Another bomb was found the evening of Sept. 17, undetonated, about four blocks away from the explosion in Chelsea (see the photo in the tweet above).
3. The suspect has been arrested.
On Sept. 19, the FBI and the Linden Police department in NJ arrested the suspect in the attacks. Ahmad Khan Rahami was apprehended in Elizabeth [4] (the site of his last known address) after a shootout with police. A citizen in Elizabeth spotted Rahami sleeping in a bar and alerted police. An officer approached Rahami, who then pulled out a handgun, shooting the officer in the abdomen. A shootout ensued, and the 28-year-old was wounded. Rahami is an American citizen of Afghan descent, according to The New York Times.
Ahmad Khan Rahami alive but injured, loaded into ambulance in Linden https://t.co/aMCNYxwFnH [5] pic.twitter.com/JJlFhPLYSu [6]
— Eyewitness News (@ABC7NY) September 19, 2016 [7]
4. The motives are unclear.
Andrew Cuomo, the governor of New York, spoke to CNN on Sept. 19 about the attack. While Cuomo originally said there was no evidence that the attack was related to international terrorism, he suggested the possibility on Monday. "I would not be surprised if we did have a foreign connection to the act," Cuomo told CNN.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo: "We have more security forces probably than ever in history right now" https://t.co/Q5eRi1qKdO [8]
— CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) September 19, 2016 [9]
Rahami's motives and the selection of where he placed the bombs still remain unclear; we will update this story when we have more information.