Watch CBS News

Search For Deadly Suspect Had Residents In Boston Area Fearing For Their Lives

SACRAMENTO (CBS13) - Countless people were ordered to stay in their homes for hours during the hunt for the second suspect in the Boston Marathon bombings this week.

Many feared that suspect number two, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, would surface and continue his alleged killing spree.

"There's still this fear that the suspect could come running up your back stairs, barge through and that you're not safe," Aaron Kellogg, who lives near the suspect, tells CBS13.

With the first bombing suspect dead in a police shootout, investigators focused on finding Dzhokhar Tsarnaev while going door-to-door in the small town of Watertown.

Fearful residents who were told to stay in their homes wondered how the second suspect in the Boston Marathon bombings could elude the army of investigators.

"Crooks have the advantage when they're involved in a situation like this," said former Sacramento County Sheriff John McGinness.

McGinness says he is not surprised Tsarnaev successfully hid from investigators on the hunt for this unpredictable suspect.

"The element of explosives involved and the fact that they have to be very measured in terms of how they use deadly force -- all of those things collectively create a scenario where the crook has the upper-hand," said McGinness.

But in the end, it turns out Tsarnaev didn't get very far. Our interview with McGinness happened as investigators surrounded the boat where they found Tsarnaev hiding out.

"And the law says he has written his own death warrant," said McGinness.

The former sheriff says investigators had every right to shoot Tsarnaev as soon as they saw him.

"He is shootable on site because of what he is believed to have done," he said.

But that would've left many questions unanswered.

"Who else may have been involved in aiding and abetting him along the way? Are there others with whom he's associated? That are factors that law enforcement should know about," he said.

Investigators say the two brothers threw pipe bombs at officers during the pursuit last night.

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.