WATERTOWN – A flurry of applause at the scene of a standoff between police and Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev signaled his capture Friday night.After a nearly two-hour standoff in a Watertown neighborhood, Tsarnaev was taken from the scene by ambulance to a local hospital.
The standoff began just before 7 p.m., minutes after Massachusetts State Police announced that they had completed their door-to-door search in Watertown without locating Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.
WBZ-TVÂ’s Jim Armstrong was in the area of Franklin Street when he heard what he described as 15-20 seconds of rapid gunfire. He was forced to take cover, and was quickly moved back to safety by police.
Boston Mayor Tom Menino confirmed to WBZ-TV that police had surrounded the bombing suspect inside a boat in the backyard of a home on Franklin Street. Sources say that a resident called police to report finding blood by the boat. WBZ NewsRadio 1030 reported that authorities were able to confirm there was a person inside by using a thermal camera from a helicopter.
On the ground, Armstrong described a flurry of police activity that erupted moments after police wrapped up a press conference in which they lifted a day-long lockdown in Watertown, Boston and several surrounding communities. Police were seen carrying small children to safety. Because the lockdown had been lifted, there were people out on the streets when the gunfire started.
Additional loud bangs were heard around 7:50 p.m. – approximately one hour after the first gunshots were heard in the neighborhood.