Boston marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev has been found guilty of all 30 federal charges, with 17 of those convictions making him eligible for the death penalty.
The 21-year-old was convicted of a series of offences, including the murder of four people and conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction. Three people were killed and more then 260 injured following the events of the Boston marathon bombing in April 2013. Tsarnaev was also found guilty of the shooting of a Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) police officer, Sean Collier, who was killed during the six-day manhunt for the suspects.
Mr Collier’s family issued a statement thanking the jury and law enforcement and expressing their affection for the survivors, victims and families affected by the attack.
“The strength and bond that everyone has shown during these last two years proves that if these terrorists thought that they would somehow strike fear in the hearts of people, they monumentally failed… we know Sean would be very proud of that,” the statement said.
The case has progressed to the penalty phase, where jurors will determine his sentencing after new testimonies are given. During the trial, Tsarnaev’s lawyers maintained that he was part of the operation, but that it was his radicalised brother who planned the terrorist attack.
Over the course of several weeks, the court heard testimonies from victims, family and friends of those who were killed in the attack. Some 96 witnesses testified over 15 court days, 92 for the prosecution and four for the defence.
Prosecutors presented the court with images of a blood stained message from Tsarnaev, engraved on the inside of the boat where he was found hiding days after the attack.
The message read, “The US Government is killing our innocent civilians but most of you already know that.”
The next phase of sentencing could begin as early as Monday. – Kayla Burke
Top screenshot from New York Daily News Youtube video.
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