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Federal Grand Jury Returns 30-Count Indictment Related to Boston Marathon Explosions and Murder of MIT Police Officer Sean Collier

Follow up to previous postings on the Boston Marathon bombings – today’s news release: “A federal grand jury today returned a 30-count indictment against Dzhokhar A. Tsarnaev for his alleged role in using weapons of mass destruction at the Boston Marathon to kill three individuals and maim or seriously injure many others, as well as for using a firearm to intentionally kill Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Police Officer Sean Collier. Tsarnaev (aka Jahar Tsarni), 19, a U.S. citizen residing in Cambridge, was charged by indictment with use of a weapon of mass destruction resulting in death and conspiracy; bombing of a place of public use resulting in death and conspiracy; malicious destruction of property resulting in death and conspiracy; use of a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence; use of a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence causing death; carjacking resulting in serious bodily injury; interference with commerce by threats or violence; and aiding and abetting. The indictment alleges that beginning no later than February 2013 and continuing until Tsarnaev was apprehended on April 19, 2013, Tsarnaev and his brother Tamerlan Tsarnaev conspired to use improvised explosive devices (IEDs) against people, property, and places of public use. Specifically, the indictment alleges that on April 15, 2013, during the 117th running of the Boston Marathon, the brothers placed IEDs among the crowds of spectators who were cheering the runners towards the Marathon finish line. After placing the IEDs among the crowd, the indictment alleges, Tsarnaev and his brother detonated the bombs seconds apart, killing three people, maiming and injuring many more, and forcing a premature end to the Marathon. The indictment alleges that the IEDs were constructed from pressure cookers, explosive powder, shrapnel, adhesives, and other items, and were designed to shred skin, shatter bone, and cause extreme pain and suffering, as well as death.”

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