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Second Boston Marathon bombing suspect captured by police

Second Boston Marathon bombing suspect captured by police

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After a massive manhunt that began on the night of the 18th, a second suspect in the Boston Marathon bombings has reportedly been captured by police following a residential standoff in Watertown, Massachusetts, NBC News reports from the scene. The FBI has confirmed that 19-year-old bombing suspect Dzhokar Tsarnaev is in custody, and The Washington Post reports that Tsarnaev was wounded when captured.

According to CBS News, a shootout was heard in Watertown shortly after Boston's lockdown was lifted, with a massive police response ensuing. Multiple local news sources reported a standoff with police in Watertown beginning around 7PM ET, as the suspect was discovered and pinned inside a boat in a residential backyard. It's safe to say the situation was chaotic, but details about police action after surrounding the suspect are largely unconfirmed.

As The Boston Globe reports, heavily armed police had been searching a 20-block area of Watertown since around 11PM ET Thursday night. The action follows a dramatic shootout and pursuit of the suspects that began last night, and the deadly bombings that occurred earlier this week at the Boston Marathon, in which three people were killed and 173 were injured.

Boston Police confirmed earlier today that they were engaged in an ongoing search for the FBI's "Suspect #2" who was identified on Thursday in connection with the Boston Marathon bombing; the first suspect was killed by police earlier today. Law enforcement officials today identified the suspects as brothers Dzhokhar A. Tsarnaev (19) and Tamerlan Tsarnaev (26), with Dzhokhar being the target of today's manhunt.

Update 9:32PM ET: In a press conference, US Attorney Carmen Ortiz, FBI, local government, and several law enforcement officials expressed their gratitude to the teams who brought in the suspect alive. "We feel a tremendous sense of gratitude and relief," said Ortiz. "Tonight we can sleep a bit easier. "Justice is being served for the victims of these terrible crimes," said FBI agent Rick DesLauriers.

According to Boston police commissioner Ed Davis, Tsarnev is in serious condition at a local hospital. It was a citizen who originally found Tsarnaev in the back of the the boat. The citizen noticed blood on the boat — which was covered with a tarp — lifted the tarp, and found him, covered with blood. Police believe he was shot the day before, and while there was an exchange of gunfire in the final encounter at the boat, they do not believe he was harmed there. While police proceeded cautiously, originally worried that the boat might be rigged with explosives, none were found at the scene. Last night, Davis says, over two hundred rounds were fired, along with improvised explosives and homemade grenades.

US Attorney Carmen Ortiz appears to have confirmed that the suspect was not read his Miranda rights at the time of arrest:

"There is a public safety exemption in cases of national security and potential charges involving acts of terrorism. And so the government has that opportunity right now, though I believe that the suspect has been taken to a hospital."

Update 10:10PM ET: President Obama has addressed the nation following the capture of the Boston bombing suspect, praising the people of Boston and law enforcement for their work. "We've closed an important chapter in this tragedy," he said. "Whatever drove these men to do these heinous acts, they've already failed," he told viewers, only to later ask that the American people trust in the justice system and "take care not to rush to judgement."

Sean Hollister contributed to this report.