Thaindian News

NEW YORK (BNO NEWS) – New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg stated Monday that investigations of the attempted car bombing in Times Square are currently underway.

Bloomberg said that local authorities are reviewing videos taken in and around Times Square on Saturday, including one that shows a man in Shubert Alley near the SUV parked on West 45th Street, one of the SUV traveling along 45th Street at Times Square, and another taken by a tourist from Pennsylvania. In addition, police are interviewing the owner of the truck.

He mentioned that the man who is shown in the video takes off an outer shirt and stuffs it into a bag as he leaves, but Bloomberg noted that he may or may have not been involved in the incident. “It was a hot day; maybe he was just changing his shirt and this is Times Square, where we have the Naked Cowboy.”

Images from 82 NYPD cameras in and near Times Square, as well as privately owned cameras are being reviewed as part of the investigation of the possible bomb. “Had it succeeded, a very serious explosion capable of doing a great deal of harm, even though I will say the fertilizer in the SUV, as determined by our Department of Environmental Protection, was a non-explosive kind,” Bloomberg said.

“We have excellent working relations with the FBI, the Department of Homeland Security, the CIA and the many other federal agencies whom are cooperating closely in this investigation. And when President Obama called me yesterday, he promised the federal government’s full cooperation in this investigation,” he added.

“We know that New York does remain a target for those who feel threatened by a free and open society and all that it represents, and that’s why over the past eight years our agencies have trained constantly and rigorously on how to respond to possible terrorist incidents.”

Bloomberg continued by reminding New Yorkers that since last fall, the city started working on the Midtown Manhattan Security Initiative, which is a network of cameras and other surveillance equipment that covers from 30th to 60th Street, committing more than $110 million to expanding security efforts in Manhattan, which includes the Lower Manhattan Security Initiative as well.

“And while there is an increased police presence in Times Square today, I just want to assure everybody that things are okay so go take in the Broadway shows, go out to dinner, enjoy everything the city has to offer and I’ll be happy to take a question about anything,” he concluded.