Boston bombers bought firework mortar kits before attack
In this image released by the FBI on April 19, 2013, two suspects in the Boston Marathon bombings walk near the marathon finish line on April 15, 2013 in Boston, Massachusetts. The suspects were identified as Dzhokhar and Tamerlan Tsarnaev.
The FBI has interviewed employees of a fireworks store in New Hampshire after it was revealed Boston bombing suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev bought $200 worth of fireworks from there in February.
"He just wanted the biggest, loudest stuff we had in the store," recalled Megan Kearns, assistant manager of Phantom Fireworks, in an interview with ABC affiliate WTMR.
There have been cases in the past where fireworks have been used by suspected terrorists in bomb making, including a man who attempted to detonate a car bomb in Times Square, ABC News reported.
Tsarnaev, who was killed Friday in a gunfight with police, bought two "Lock and Load" mortar kits which included 48 shells, Phantom Fireworks President Bruce J. Zoldan told the Boston Herald.
But company vice president William Weimer believes the amount of gunpowder contained in the kits would have not have been powerful enough on its own to detonate the bombs, AP reported.
He said it is possible some of the gunpowder could have been used.
“My suspicion is they experimented with this, decided they couldn’t get enough powder out of them and went to look for another fuel,” Weimer said.
Tsarnaev, 26, and his younger brother, Dzhokhar, 19, are accused of the deadly Boston marathon attacks that killed three people and injured more than 180 others on April 15. Dzhokhar Tsarnaev who was captured alive remains in hospital with serious wounds.