Boston authorities to public: Don’t broadcast ‘tactical positions’
As a dramatic hunt for the second suspect in the Boston bombings continues, Boston Police are urging would-be citizen journalists to stay quiet for now.
The other suspect, Tamerlan Tsarnaev, 26, who is the brother of Dzhokhar, was killed in a shootout overnight, as military and law enforcement officials poured into Watertown, Mass., creating a 20-block perimeter where they believed Dzhokhar was holed up.
Media reports are saying the manhunt has since expanded, and the city of Boston is effectively closed down.
News and speculation is spreading rapidly through network and cable news stations, as well as through Twitter, where a number of people in the area of Watertown, have tweeted about the presence of authorities, including pictures and updates from police scanners.
Amid these tweets, Boston Police issued this message:
#MediaAlert: WARNING: Do Not Compromise Officer Safety by Broadcasting Tactical Positions of Homes Being Searched.
— Boston Police Dept. (@Boston_Police) April 19, 2013
The Massachusetts State Police account addressed the trend of people trying to interpret police scanners through a retweet:
Stopped tweeting from the Police Scanner a few hours ago. It’s not helping and only confusing people. Let the authorities do their job.
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