5 Taken Into Custody Near Verrazano Bridge in Connection With Chelsea Bombing: Sources

NEW YORK, NY — A large police presence late Sunday near the Verrazano Bridge in Brooklyn has led to several individuals taken into custody in connection with the Chelsea bombing from Saturday.

Five men who may be connected to the bombs were taken into custody Sunday night by the FBI as they crossed from Staten Island into Brooklyn over the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, sources said. They have not been charged.

FBI Assistant Director William Sweeney said in a Monday press conference after the apprehension of Ahmad Khan Rahami that the car was stopped because it had been located at an address associated with the suspect. The individuals were not being charged with anything and were no longer being detained as of Monday afternoon.

The men had several weapons in the SUV, according to a law enforcement source.

The FBI was led to the men after discovering more pipe bombs at a Elizabeth, New Jersey train station, sources said. NJ Transit confirmed "police activity" was holding up trains from entering New York-Penn Station on Sunday night. The mayor of Elizabeth told NBC New York that two people discovered a backpack in a garbage bin near the station which contained pipe bombs. One of the bombs accidentally went off while being disabled by a robot, but no one was injured, officials said.

The New York Post reported that the men were headed to the airport. A source would only tell Patch that was being investigated.

Sources said that the men are believed to be connected to the attack but refused to elaborate on why.

State Sen. Marty Golden, who represents the 22nd District in south Brooklyn, said on Instagram at 10:30 p.m. that "about an hour ago, the FBI took several individuals into custody on the Belt Parkway in the area underneath the Verrazano Bridge, with a possible connection to the bombing last night in Chelsea," saying the information came from the NYPD.

However, an NYPD spokesperson told Patch they had no information on any possible operation on the Verrazano Bridge late Sunday.

The FBI confirmed they had taken multiple people in custody, but had not charged anyone.

Golden is a former NYPD officer, who retired from the force in 1983 after suffering an injury on the job.

There's no question some operation took place on the Belt Parkway near the Verrazano Bridge late Sunday, where traffic was backed up due to law enforcement activity, according to people on the scene.

The region in question, near Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, is represented by Golden.

Law enforcement sources tell Patch that in just over 24 hours, many clues have been accumulated into who may be responsible for placing the two bombs in Manhattan on Saturday — one that went off injuring 29 people, and one that didn’t, but could have caused just as much damage had it not been found.

Sources describe the Manhattan devices as both being pressure cookers with Christmas lights and flip-style cell phones. Both were filled with ball-bearings and shrapnel.

Police said the Manhattan device that did not explode was rendered safe at the NYPD facility at Rodman’s Neck. From there it was being transported to the FBI lab in Quantico, Virginia. Officials hope to be able to trace the purchases of several items including the pressure cooker, the Christmas lights and the cell phone.

Officials at the FBI lab will also examine evidence recovered from the scene where the bomb did go off. Some of that evidence will come from a 2012 Toyota Camry that was operated by a driver for Uber. He had just picked up a mom and her daughters and drove by the site as the bomb exploded.

He continued to a destination on Madison Avenue in the 40s and the FBI took possession of the car there.

Correction: An earlier version of this story said the five people had been arrested, when in fact they were just taken into custody by the FBI.

Reporting by Colin Miner/Patch

Photo Credit: Gov. Andrew Cuomo's office via Flick