Clues to help identify those responsible for the Boston Marathon bombings are encrypted in the explosives, according to leading experts on terrorism.
“One possible key of course is to go to the forensics and that will involve the possible loosest examination of the explosives themselves,” said Canadian security analyst David Harris, on Global News’ The Morning Show Tuesday.
“These kinds of things often have what are referred to as signature tell-tale signs that could signal who exactly might have been involved in putting these items together,” said Harris.
The explosives, packed in 6-litre pressure cookers, were placed in six separate black duffel bags, according to a person briefed on the attack.
The person – speaking on the condition of anonymity because the investigation was ongoing – said the bags were filled with shards of metal and ball bearings.
Watch the video: Details of Boston explosives revealed
Though officials from the FBI and Homeland Security have not yet determined whether the attacks were foreign or domestic, amateur or professional, terrorist expert David Harris said in a phone interview with Global News that certain clues like what lies in the explosives may lead investigators to the attackers.
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“Gun powdered explosives seemed to have been used,” Harris said. “This tends to be more readily available than C4 or other more sophisticated alternatives. One might say the attackers might have been limited in their networks acquired to secure other material.”
“It might be used in rural areas for agricultural purposes,” he said. “And, you can also get gun powder out of bullets and ammunitions. Internationally it isn’t too difficult if you have the networks.”
Beyond what is in the explosives, intricacies like the positioning of the bombs can also help lead investigators to the perpetrators of the attack.
“In the last twenty or thirty years, information about placing and location has become very wildly available through the internet,” Harris said. “The internet has laid everything out pretty clearly.” He said this availability in location and placing of explosive devices can possibly indicate that the terrorists were not expert attackers, though he said details must be further confirmed to make those assumptions.
The two bombs killed three people, including an 8-year-old boy, and wounded more than 170 people.
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