Newton Police Part of Search for Marathon Bomber; One Officer Gains Internet Fame

From the moment shots were fired in Watertown early Friday morning to the time Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was captured Friday night, Newton Police officers were in the thick of the Marathon bomber manhunt. 

Numerous officers responded to the scene in Watertown late last week, providing mutual aid for patrols and security, according to Newton Police Lt. Bruce Apotheker. Newton officers also joined fellow law enforcement officials in the search for Tsarnaev.

A hair-raising Thursday night/Friday morning chase and firefight led to the death of MIT Police Officer Sean Collier, the shooting of Transit Police officer Richard Donohue, a dead suspect and another in handcuffs. Along the way, nearly one million Greater Boston residents were trapped in their homes as the suspects tossed explosives, engaged in heavy arms fire with police, and finally (after one was killed) the survivor seemingly barricaded himself in a Watertown house.

A "tremendous" amount of work was done by all departments and officers involved, Apotheker said, and the multiple agencies worked well together throughout the ordeal.

According to Apotheker, both on- and off-duty officers were called in to help Watertown. Officers were also pulled off details in Newton to help with searches and security while several captains and other personnel, including Apotheker, responded to the command center and staging area at the Watertown Mall.

One of the Newton officers who responded to Watertown last week seems to have transformed into an internet celebrity over the last few days. As noted on the Village 14 blog, an Internet meme has popped up using an image of a Newton Police officer.

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