Three men were arrested and charged today in connection with the Boston Marathon bombing investigation.

Dias Kadyrbayev, 19, and Azamat Tazhayakov, 19, both of New Bedford, were charged in a criminal complaint with conspiracy to obstruct justice by conspiring to destroy, conceal, and cover up tangible objects belonging to suspected marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, namely a laptop computer and backpack containing fireworks. A third man, Robel Phillipos, 19, of Cambridge, was charged with willfully making materially false statements to federal law enforcement officials during a terrorism investigation. According to the affidavit accompanying the complaint, Kadyrbayev and Tazhayakov are both nationals of Kazakhstan who entered the United States on student visas. Kadyrbayev and Tazhayakov face a maximum sentence of five years in prison and $250,000 fine. Phillipos faces a maximum sentence of eight years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

Opened and emptied fireworks found in Dzhokhar Tsarnaev’s dormitory room; Dias Kadyrbayev and Azamat Tazhayakov are charged with conspiring to destroy the evidence, among other offenses. | Higher resolution



United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz and Richard DesLauriers, Special Agent in Charge of the Boston Field Office of the FBI, announced the charges today. This investigation was conducted by the FBI’s Boston Division, the Boston Police Department, the Massachusetts State Police, and member agencies of the Boston Joint Terrorism Task Force, which is composed of more than 30 federal, state, and local enforcement agencies, including the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement-Homeland Security Investigations, U.S. Marshals Service, U.S. Secret Service, the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority, and others. In addition, the Watertown Police Department, the Cambridge Police Department, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Police Department, the Boston Fire Department, the National Guard, and police, fire, and emergency responders from across Massachusetts and New England played critical roles in the investigation and response.

The charges contained in the complaints are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

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