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NY Bombing Suspect: Who is Ahmad Khan Rahami?

Posted at 10:46 AM, Sep 19, 2016
and last updated 2016-09-19 13:27:58-04

(CNN) — Two days after explosions in New York and New Jersey, investigators in both cases say they want to talk with one man: Ahmad Khan Rahami.

Soon, they could have a chance.

Rahami is in custody after a shootout Monday morning with police in Linden, New Jersey, sources said.

Officials had said Rahami was wanted for questioning in connection with Saturday’s blast that injured 29 people in New York City and an explosion that occurred near a charity race in Seaside Park, New Jersey, earlier that day.

Authorities haven’t publicly detailed why they believe he’s connected to the bombings.

Here’s what we know so far about Rahami:

What’s his connection?

• According to multiple officials, investigators want to question Rahami because they believe he’s the man seen on surveillance video dragging a duffel bag near the site of the New York explosion, and the location where police eventually found a suspicious pressure cooker four blocks away.

• His last known address was in Elizabeth, New Jersey, the FBI says. That’s the same city where a backpack with multiple bombs inside was found Sunday night, but so far authorities haven’t publicly said whether they believe Rahami is linked to those explosives. Sources say they believe he is.

How did authorities find him?

• Investigators first identified Rahami Sunday afternoon through a fingerprint, according to a senior law enforcement official. A cell phone connected to the pressure cooker also provided some clues, the official said.

• Sometime Monday morning, a man appeared to be sleeping in the vestibule of a bar in Linden. witnesses said. An officer recognized the man as possibly looking like the bombing suspect and approached. That’s when the shootout erupted, according to witnesses.

What’s his background?

• The 28-year-old was born in Afghanistan and is a naturalized U.S. citizen, according to the FBI.

• He majored in criminal justice at Middlesex County College in Edison, New Jersey, school spokesman Tom Peterson said. Rahami attended the college from 2010-2012 but did not graduate.

• Rahami’s family lives above First American Fried Chicken in Elizabeth, the city’s mayor says. The family has a history of clashes with the community over the restaurant, which used to be open 24 hours a day, Mayor Chris Bollwage said. Investigators searched the building Monday, Bollwage said.

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