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FBI Hunts Terror 'Sleeper Cell' Linked to Tsarnaev Brothers

The death of one suspected bomber and the capture of the other on Friday in the Boston Marathon bombing may not be the end of arrests in the case. Yesterday afternoon, FBI and DHS agents arrived at the same New Bedford apartment complex where they had detained three people in the Friday manhunt for Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, this time taking two away in handcuffs:

Agents wearing FBI and Department of Homeland Security jackets detained two men at the Hidden Brook apartment complex just hours after releasing three people believed to be associated with Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.

Interestingly, this time the FBI and DHS didn’t come alone. A consular vehicle from an unidentified nation also arrived, and transported two women out of the complex after the arrests took place:

Earlier Saturday afternoon, a silver mini-van with consulate license plates arrived at the Carriage Drive apartment along with the FBI and Homeland Security, and stayed a half an hour longer than the agents.

The van left with two women, neither of whom appeared to be restrained. One was carrying a pink backpack as she exited the apartment and ran into the van, which sped away as the women told reporters they did not wish to comment.

The police told the Standard-Times on Friday that the two men were believed to be fellow students at the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth.

Meanwhile, the Daily Mirror in the UK reports that the FBI is investigating the possibility that the Tsarnaev brothers were part of a “sleeper cell” in the US that could contain a dozen operatives:

The FBI was last night hunting a 12-strong terrorist “sleeper cell” linked to the Boston marathon bomb brothers.

Police believe Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev were specially trained to carry out the devastating attack.

More than 1,000 FBI operatives were last night working to track down the cell and arrested a man and two women 60 miles from Boston in the hours before Dzhokhar’s dramatic capture after a bloody shootout on Friday.

A source close to the investigation said: “We have no doubt the brothers were not acting alone. The devices used to detonate the two bombs were highly sophisticated and not the kind of thing people learn from Google.

“They were too advanced. Someone gave the brothers the skills and it is now our job to find out just who they were. Agents think the sleeper cell has up to a dozen members and has been waiting several years for their day to come.”

Update: The New York Daily News has photos of the two men, and report that they have been detained on “immigration violations”:


Two foreign nationals — who are believed to be associates of the alleged Boston Marathon bombers — were arrested Saturday on immigration violations, authorities said.

The men, identified by neighbors as 19-year-olds from Kazakhstan, drove around in a black BMW with the mock license plate, “TERRORISTA #1.”

The pair was hauled out of their New Bedford apartment in handcuffs about 3:50 p.m. The raid was carried out by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, a spokesman told the Daily News.

Update: Looks like KDKA has heard what the Mirror reported earlier:

kdkalogo_450x450_normal.jpg
KDKA Radio @KDKARadio

New at 1:00 FBI Source: suspects could have ties to 12-member terrorist sleeper cell group. @tunein http://KDKA.com.....snip~

More arrests in Boston bombing case? Update: KDKA report confirming Mirror account? « Hot Air
 
Agents wearing FBI and Department of Homeland Security jackets detained two men at the Hidden Brook apartment complex just hours after releasing three people believed to be associated with Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.

I'm hoping these were the idiots who twittered that the FBI was there before the FBI had a chance to search the complex initially.
 
I'm hoping these were the idiots who twittered that the FBI was there before the FBI had a chance to search the complex initially.

I am interested in who the Silver Mini Van was representing. Someone should have followed that back to wherever it went.
 
Why would somebody shoot themselves in the throat? I have never heard of suicides doing that.
 
Why would somebody shoot themselves in the throat? I have never heard of suicides doing that.

Well, he might not have pointed the Gun up when he stuck it in his mouth. Plus I thought they said he was taking fire at the same time.
 
Why would somebody shoot themselves in the throat? I have never heard of suicides doing that.

So that if their suicide attempt fails, they can't be made to talk.

I'm pretty much ignoring the news right now because it's mostly wild speculation meant to stoke fear. The best thing people can do is tune it out until real facts are presented because the talking heads are just making our nation's security dilemma even worse by ranting on and on about it.
 
So that if their suicide attempt fails, they can't be made to talk.

I'm pretty much ignoring the news right now because it's mostly wild speculation meant to stoke fear. The best thing people can do is tune it out until real facts are presented because the talking heads are just making our nation's security dilemma even worse by ranting on and on about it.

That's another reason why I think these so called Officials and Sources should have to put their name out there. If they want to come this far.....then tag just who you are that is talking that is.....an Official. Eventually it will be discovered who leaked.
 
Huh? You mean two congressmen

they'd be fools not to ask

As the [FBI] was accused of "dropping the ball" over the case, NBC News reported that Tamerlan Tsarnaev had been seen making six visits to a known Islamic militant [Gadzhimurad Dolgatov, who was killed by Russian police last December in Makhachkala] in a mosque in the Russian republic of Dagestan.

The visits came during a six month trip that Tamerlan made to the city of Makhachkala to see his family, NBC said.

According to a local police official, a case file on Tsarnaev was then handed over to the FBI along with a request for further information. However, the FBI never replied.

Michael McCaul, the chair of the House Homeland Security Committee, said the FBI must explain why it failed to keep track of Tsarnaev after the 2011 interview, particularly after he visited his family in Dagestan, which is a known centre of Islamist militancy and training facilities.

"If he [Tamerlan Tsarnaev] was on the radar and they let him go, if he was on the Russians' radar, why wasn't a flag put on him, some sort of customs flag?" Mr McCaul asked on CNN, adding that there were clear signs that Tsarnaev had been radicalized during his trip.

In a further sign that Tsarnaev's record was in the US security apparatus, the New York Times reported yesterday that a "hold" had been placed on his citizenship request by the Department of Homeland Security after routine background checks discovered the FBI's former interest in him.

Boston bomber: FBI 'dropped the ball' over Tamerlan Tsarnaev - Telegraph

more on the subject:

Tamerlan Tsarnaev's Trip To Dagestan - Business Insider
 
That's another reason why I think these so called Officials and Sources should have to put their name out there. If they want to come this far.....then tag just who you are that is talking that is.....an Official. Eventually it will be discovered who leaked.

In talking head speak "Officials and Sources" could mean some secretary working at Homeland who heard a snippet of some meeting or another.
 
So that if their suicide attempt fails, they can't be made to talk.

I'm pretty much ignoring the news right now because it's mostly wild speculation meant to stoke fear. The best thing people can do is tune it out until real facts are presented because the talking heads are just making our nation's security dilemma even worse by ranting on and on about it.

But real facts are being presented, and they're "news." Better to verify for yourself and pay attention now as this becomes more complex. Waiting for some official summary of the facts will take a very long time.

Not sure what you mean by "our nation's security dilemma," but I don't think the media are making the nation's security weaker necessarily.
 

The point is, they can ask all they want, but expecting an immediate and ACCURATE answer is foolish. But that's not what's happenning here. These questions are being asked to fuel speculation and forward the news cycle. A form of throwing spaghetti against the wall and seeing what sticks. Then later, if something sticks and is backed up by the eventual release of the facts of the matter, the talking head or politico can say, "see, I was right".

It's a foolish game, best not to play it.
 
Well, he might not have pointed the Gun up
when he stuck it in his mouth. Plus I thought they said he was taking fire at the same time.

I didn't hear that the gun was inside his mouth. I just think its ironic how badly they wanted to get him alive so they could question him, and now he may never be able to talk again. I wonder if he'll have other serve disabilities or even memory issues.
 
In talking head speak "Officials and Sources" could mean some secretary working at Homeland who heard a snippet of some meeting or another.

Same deal with reporters taking stories off scanners and not getting any validation. Other than a nod that an event is ongoing. Or Former Agent so and so who no longer is working with them.
 
it's mostly wild speculation meant to stoke fear

nbc, time mag, nyt, the boston globe?

get real

it's the direction the investigation is going, as best we know

stay tuned, the ultimate truth will out
 
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I didn't hear that the gun was inside his mouth. I just think its ironic how badly they wanted to get him alive so they could question him, and now he may never be able to talk again. I wonder if he'll have other serve disabilities or even memory issues.

I think he would have had to put it into his mouth.....as I don't think he would just point and open his mouth. Doesn't mean he wont be able to speak ever again anyways. Just for the time being.
 
But real facts are being presented, and they're "news." Better to verify for yourself and pay attention now as this becomes more complex. Waiting for some official summary of the facts will take a very long time.

It's too exhausting to separate the grain from the chaff at this point, given all the sensationalism and emotional hyperbole. I'll wait until facts are known and then form an opinion. Right now, I'm of the view that the situation is very complicated and our government was likely in bed with these people at some point, like they are with many cells turned terrorist.

Not sure what you mean by "our nation's security dilemma," but I don't think the media are making the nation's security weaker necessarily.

I mostly mean the calls for better security, more laws, fewer freedoms, yada yada... the same load of crap we see every time a few people die.
 
tell it to markey and lynch

Another silly response. I'm telling it to YOU. They are area congress critters - they should be asking questions of the FBI and Homeland Security, not blathering about it with talking heads. They're just playing politics, informing those they represent that they're there asking the "tough" questions. Making the appearance of doing something when there's nothing for them to do.
 
CBS television quoted investigators as saying that Tsarnaev suffered two serious wounds and had lost a lot of blood. It said investigators had speculated that one wound in the back of his neck could have been a suicide attempt.

"They say it appears from the wound that he might have stuck a gun in his mouth and fired," said the report, which added that Tsarnaev could understand what those around him were saying.

Boston bomb suspect cannot speak as doctors treat throat wounds - Telegraph
 
nbc, time mag, nyt, the boston globe?

get real

it's the direction the investigation is going, as best we know

stay tuned, the ultimate truth will out

Yes, by all means get real and step away from the talking heads of "nbc, time mag, nyt, the boston globe".
 
I agree. It is way too soon to come to any conclusions, but it is human nature to want immediate answers especially due to the vast amounts of information from all sources that we instantly receive.

CNN had a bad week, that's for sure.

Did you catch that gaff when the reporter on Friday told Wolf Blitzer that the streets in Boston were so deserted, "as if a bomb went off." ?

It's probably Vladimir Putin who has the information that we want confirmed. There's only one problem, Putin doesn't respect Obama. But we as Americans as the Russians have a common enemy. Vladimir Putin’s intelligence service knows Chechnya: The Russian president may be able to help the United States understand the origins of the Boston Marathon bombing. - Slate Magazine
 
Beginning tomorrow, the Boston Globe will return to its content-for-subscribers-only policy except for one live blog.
 
they should be asking questions of the FBI and Homeland Security

yup

House committee wants administration's intelligence on Tamerlan Tsarnaev | Fox News

also:

Lynch added that he believes Congress must ultimately play a role in getting more answers and determining if the attack could have been stopped.

In response to written questions, Lynch’s primary opponent, Representative Edward J. Markey, whose district includes Watertown, said he has similar questions.

link above (globe)
 
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