Boston Marathon Bombing Conspiracy Theories: Were The Tsarnaev Brothers Set Up?

In the wake of the Boston Marathon bombings, the internet has been in a craze with conspiracy theories. Between videos, photos and blog posts there are many people claiming they know the “truth” about the Boston Marathon bombings.

Here is a roundup of the most convincing conspiracy theories:

Anonymous post on 4chan

About 4 hours after the bombs exploded at the finish line of the Boston Marathon, an anonymous user posted information on 4chan that directly discussed the series of events that will follow in the search for those responsible. The Anonymous organization tweeted out a photo of the post that read,
“Warning: Laws being written to screw you. I work on a security commission and I’ve just received word to start a campaign we’ve been working on for the last two months and now it all makes sense. I’ll keep it as short as I can. They’re going to pin this event on a male late teens to early 20s and say he did it because he’s unstable. They are going to find firearms and a NRA book in his home. They are going to say he used reloading powder for the explosion and that reloading powder shouldn’t be for sale to the public. They are then going to say that because the powder in the ammunition can be used for explosions that the number of rounds you can buy should be limited and taxed to help pay for these events. I can’t do anything or I’ll lose my job and possibly face criminal charges. Please don’t let them get away with it. They won’t find the suspects till later this week and the raid is issued to occur on Friday. This is a staged event. The people hurt are real gut the event was planned. Don’t let them hurt our rights. I’m at work so I used a copy of a picture on another thread. Also please don’t mention me. It will seriously hurt me.”

And while this can be discounted as just another person writing conspiracy theories about the bombings and specifically the U.S. Government, the eerie part is that all of the information was true. Boston Marathon bombing suspects were identified as Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, who match the description provided in the 4chan post.

And then, hours later U.S. Senator Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) announced two amendments to his gunpowder controlling legislation, deemed the "Explosive Materials Background Check Act." Senator Lautenberg released a press release on Wednesday stating, “In the wake of the deadly bombing attacks in Boston, U.S. Senator Frank R. Lautenberg (D-NJ) today announced that he will reintroduce legislation he has proposed in a prior Congress to require that sales of explosive powder be subject to a background check.” And while most would agree that this is a normal reaction to a terrorist attack, the suspicion aspect of the immediate amendments emerges due to the fact the Lautenberg’s amendments come hours before it was confirmed by authorities that gunpowder was the main explosive component in the Boston Marathon bombings.

Tamerlan Tsarnaev’s death

In the early morning hours of April 19, news stations repeatedly showed video footage of man, fully nude, resembling Tamerlan Tsarnaev handcuffed and being placed under arrest following the firefight in Watertown, Massachusetts. However, hours later it was revealed that Tamerlan was announced DOA at a Boston hospital due after receiving multiple gunshot wounds and being run over by his brother, Dzhokhar with an SUV. Reddit released an incredibly graphic image reportedly of Tamerlan Tsarnaev following his autopsy. Click here to see the graphic autopsy image.

However, now conspiracy theory sites are questioning how Tamerlan died? And if the man cuffed and naked was not Tamerlan, who was he and where is he now?

FBI previously inquired about Tamerlan Tsarneav

On April 19, the FBI released this statement: “Once the FBI learned the identities of the two brothers today, the FBI reviewed its records and determined that in early 2011, a foreign government asked the FBI for information about Tamerlan Tsarnaev. The request stated that it was based on information that he was a follower of radical Islam and a strong believer, and that he had changed drastically since 2010 as he prepared to leave the United States for travel to the country’s region to join unspecified underground groups.”
The statement continued and became even more intriguing, “The FBI also interviewed Tamerlan Tsarnaev and family members. The FBI did not find any terrorism activity, domestic or foreign, and those results were provided to the foreign government in the summer of 2011.”

If the FBI had interviewed all members of the family in 2011, they should have found some information that the brothers had even a slight interest in radical Islam.

Following the Boston Marathon bombings and the confirmation of the identity of the suspects, the Tsarnaev brothers' mother, Zubeidat Tsarnaeva, denies that her sons could have possibly carried out the attacks. In an interview with BBC she claims that the FBI was following Tamerlan very closely. “He was controlled by the FBI, like for three, five years. They knew what my son was doing, they knew what actions, and what sites on [the] Internet he was going [to]. ... They used to talk to me ... they were telling me that he is a serious leader and they are afraid of him. ... They were controlling every step of him, and they are telling us today that this was a terrorist act.” While a mother will always defend her children, the question remains if the FBI had identified Tamerlan as “follower of radical Islam and a strong believer” why would they not continue a monitoring and investigation?

What do you think about these conspiracies theories regarding the Boston Marathon bombings and the Tsarnaev brothers?

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