Suspicious devices found in a backpack exploded in New Jersey, as the FBI reveal they are questioning five people in connection with the New York City explosion that injured 29 people on Saturday, September 17.
The latest blast happened in the early hours of Monday morning after five devices were reported to have been found near a train station in Elizabeth.
According to several news outlets, one of the devices exploded as FBI bomb squad robots attempted to disarm it, and local mayor Christian Bollwage confirmed details to reporters on the scene.
“This was an explosive device,” he said. “Based on the loudness, I think people could have been severely hurt or injured if they had been in the vicinity.”
He also documented details of the scene on social media.
Authorities have not said whether they believed the backpack is linked to the bombs in Manhattan — one of which was defused — or an earlier pipe bomb at a military fun run in New Jersey on Saturday.
FBI Bomb Squad is on scene and continuing the investigation at the train station in Midtown Elizabeth. pic.twitter.com/qvmzsgisjC
— Chris Bollwage (@MayorBollwage) September 19, 2016
However, a police source who spoke to the New York Post said an unidentified man had called them after the bombings over the weekend, warning there would be more.
This blast came just hours after the FBI pulled over a “vehicle of interest” on a highway in Brooklyn on Sunday night and questioned the occupants.
“We did a traffic stop of a vehicle of interest in the investigation,” the FBI tweeted. “No one has been charged with any crime. The investigation is continuing.”
