NYC Police Seek Possible Bomb Suspect
A police vehicle is seen in Times Square in New York, 2 May 2010. Authorities say police have found an "amateurish" but potentially powerful bomb that apparently began to detonate but did not explode in a smoking sport utility vehicle in Times Square. Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said Sunday that thousands of tourists were cleared from the streets for 10 hours after a T-shirt vendor alerted police to the suspicious vehicle, which contained three propane tanks, fireworks, two filled 20-liter (5-gallon) gasoline containers, and two clocks with batteries, electrical wire and other components.
Police in New York City are searching for suspects behind Saturday＇s failed car bombing in Times Square.
Law enforcement officials say surveillance footage shows an unidentified man in his 40s walking away from the area, taking off a shirt and looking back in the direction of the smoking vehicle.
Police said they have found no evidence of Taliban involvement in the car-bombing attempt, despite claims to the contrary by a Pakistani group.
New York Police Chief Raymond Kelly says, had the bomb detonated, it would have split the vehicle in half, causing a "significant fireball."
Officials say the improvised bomb was comprised of three propane tanks, fireworks, two gasoline containers, and two clocks with batteries. Police spokesman Paul Browne says the bomb appeared to have started to detonate but malfunctioned.
Mayor Michael Bloomberg, center, Governor David Paterson, left, and Speaker Christine C. Quinn, right hold a news conference in Times Square early Sunday morning, 02 May 2010
New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has praised the city police force for a swift response.
Bloomberg insisted that New York is safe, noting that Times Square, a hub for the Broadway theater scene, was once again filled with people Sunday.
White House officials have said authorities are looking into all possibilities for the motivation behind the incident. U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said officials are treating the incident as though it could have been an act of terrorism.
Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.
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