https://www.dnainfo.com/new-york/20160919/chelsea/thieves-helped-crack-chelsea-bombing-case-sources-sayThieves Helped Crack the Chelsea Bombing Case, Sources SayBy Murray Weiss and Aidan Gardiner |
September 19, 2016 10:25am
MANHATTAN — Leave the bomb, take the bag.
In two separate cases, thieves snatching bags from city streets and train stations inadvertently helped law enforcement get the upper hand in an ongoing bomb spree that's hurt dozens of people and spans both sides of the Hudson River, sources said.
The day Ahmad Khan Rahami allegedly planted two bombs in Chelsea — one of which detonated on West 23rd Street — two thieves accidentally helped to disable his second pressure cooker bomb left inside a rolling suitcase on West 27th Street, sources said.
The young men, who sources described as being well-dressed, opened the bag and took the bomb out, sources said, before placing the explosive into a garbage bag and walking away with the rolling suitcase.
In doing so, investigators believe they inadvertently disabled the explosive, sources said. That allowed investigators to examine the cellphone attached to the bomb intact and discover that it was connected to the family of Rahami.
From there, they were able to identify pictures on social media of Rahami's family and of him, and they matched one of his photos to surveillance footage captured in Manhattan.
They also found a website where Rahami allegedly posted jihadist missives, sources said.
Rahami, who was born in Afghanistan but lived in Elizabeth, N.J., had deposited the second bomb about four blocks away from the one that detonated and wounded 29 people on West 23rd Street, police said.
"Who in this world finds a pressure cooker with a phone and just takes the bag?" a law enforcement source said.
The two men are not believed to be involved in the terror plot, but investigators still want to speak to them.
Then, on Sunday night, two would-be thieves snatched a backpack resting atop a trash can near a train station in Elizabeth, N.J., according to reports.
They started rooting through the bag and found five explosives that officials say are tied to Rahami, prompting them to immediately drop the bag in the middle of the street and call police, according to reports and the New Jersey State Police.
Rahami had not been arrested as of Monday morning, officials said. Investigators believe he also planted a bomb in Seaside Park, N.J., which exploded without injuring anyone, according to the New Jersey State Police.
