Massive Police Operation in Boston Area; Police Officer Killed at MIT; FBI on Scene in Watertown; Reports of Explosions

A massive police operation is underway in the Boston area – specifically Watertown, MA.  The FBI is reportedly on the scene accompanying an assortment of state and local police.  It is not yet known whether the events are related to the Boston Marathon bombing or the manhunt sparked by the release of suspect photos earlier Thursday.

Reports of a shooting on the campus of MIT are that at least one police officer was killed.  At this time there is no reported link to connect the two events.

CNN’s Jake Tapper is reporting from the scene in Watertown and is saying at least one person is in police custody.  He is also reporting that authorities are advising citizens of Watertown to stay indoors.

Again, no one is reporting that the events in Watertown are any way related to the Boston Marathon bombing.  The massive police presence could be nothing more than a response to the shooting of a fellow police officer.  Federal, state, and local authorities are on high alert, so it would be fitting that they would all respond to such an event.

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To catch you up…

From CNN:

(2:21 a.m. ET) MIT releases statement on shooting death of campus police officer:  “MIT is heartbroken by the news that an MIT Police officer was shot and killed in the line of duty on Thursday night on campus, near Building 32 (the Stata Center). Our thoughts are now with the family.” http://bit.ly/15lcg2r

(2:19 a.m. ET) Boston Police Department’s official Twitter feed says “there is an active incident ongoing in Watertown. Residents in that area are advised to remain in their homes. More details when available.”

(2:07 a.m. ET) CNN’s Gabe Ramirez on the scene in Watertown, Massachusetts, says that authorities are ordering people in the area to shut off their cell phones.

(1:49 a.m. ET): At least one person was arrested in Watertown, Massachusetts early Friday morning, stripped naked before being taken in custody, CNN photojournalist Gabe Ramirez observed. It is unclear if this arrest was related to the shooting at Massachusetts Institute of Technology campus or any other incident in Boston the area.

(1:23 a.m. ET):  Dozens of police have rushed to an area of Watertown, Massachusetts, just over two miles from Cambridge, said CNN’s Drew Griffin, who is near the scene. A “very large event has taken place,” Griffin said. There were reports that explosives were involved.

(12:45 a.m. ET): A university police officer has died after being shot on the Massachusetts Institute of Technology campus in Cambridge late Thursday, said state police spokesman Lt. Mark Riley.  The MIT officer was responding to a disturbance when he was shot, according to the state district attorney’s office. He sustained “multiple gunshot wounds.”

State police and the FBI were called in after the shooting and found the campus policeman near Building 32 on MIT’s campus. He was taken to Massachusetts General Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, the district attorney’s office said. Dozens of officers surrounded and cordoned off the building, known as the Stata Center, which houses computer science laboratories as well as the department of linguistics and philosophy, according to MIT’s website.

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