The FBI released photos on Thursday of two suspects in the Monday bombing of the Boston Marathon that killed three people and injured 176.
The two men are both wearing baseball caps and carrying backpacks, and the FBI said it has video of one of the men leaving his backpack near the site of one of the explosions.
"We consider them armed and extremely dangerous. No one should approach them," FBI Special Agent Rick DesLauriers said in a briefing. "No one should attempt to apprehend them except law enforcement. Let me reiterate that caution, do not take any action on your own. If you see these men, contact law enforcement."
The FBI released several photos of the two men as well as a video of the two men walking near the marathon route. Some of the images show the two men walking together, which captured the attention of investigators.
Finding the two suspects is now the primary focus of the investigation, DesLauriers said.
"Identifying and locating those responsible is now our highest priority," said DesLauriers. "No other details of the investigation will be released at this time because this is our focus now. It continues to be an ongoing, active investigation."
The first man identified has a black baseball cap with white lettering and a dark backpack. The FBI does not have video of that man leaving his backpack on the parade route.
The second man, seen leaving the backpack, is wearing a white baseball cap backwards. That man, after leaving the backpack, walked west on Boylston Street, the FBI agent added.
Source: FBI
“At these time these are the people of interest to the FBI," DesLauriers said.
While the two men remain at large, DesLauriers said: “There is no additionally imminent danger that we are aware of right now.”
Authorities had previously said that the explosive devices in the bombings had been made of pressure cookers loaded with BB pellets, shards of metal and ball bearings. Law enforcement officials said the explosives were carried in dark nylon bags.
The announcement of the two suspects comes three days after the attack. The interim was filled with false reports of suspects and arrests by the FBI.
President Obama traveled to Boston Thursday to take part in an interfaith service for the victims.
The president promised in his speech that the perpetrators of the attack would be captured.
"Yes, we will find you, and yes, you will face justice," Obama said. "We will find you, we will hold you accountable, but more than that, our fidelity to our way of life, to a free and open society, will only grow stronger."
Obama also praised Boston for being resilient in carrying on after the tragedy.
"A bomb can't beat us," the president added. "That's why we don't hunker down. That's why we don't cower in fear. We carry on. We race. We strive. We build and we work and we love."
Earlier on Thursday, House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Mike McCaul (R-Texas) told reporters that he's worried if the FBI investigation takes too long, the bombers could have the chance to flee the country.
"Everyday that passes, it gets colder," McCaul said of the trail the FBI is seeking to follow. "As a federal prosecutor, the first 24 hours of a murder case are pretty important."
Source: FBI
The forensic tests on the bombs could be completed as early as today, which will give officials more specific information about the bomb maker, McCaul said.
"That's going to tell us a lot," he said. "Hopefully they execute search warrants and hopefully find these guys."
"The terrorists are still out there," he said. "I know flights outbound of the United States are on high alert. But every day that goes by it's more difficult to find them."
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano pleaded for patience Thursday morning during a House hearing, where she said the FBI had identified people of interest.
“There is some video that has raised the question of those [people] that the FBI would like to speak with. I wouldn’t characterize them as suspects under the technical term, but we need the public’s help in locating these individuals.”
Napolitano said that while the FBI hasn’t made any arrests in the case, the investigation is progressing and the public and media should understand that the work will take time.
“The investigation is proceeding apace. This is not an 'NCIS' episode. Sometimes you have to take time to properly put the chain together to identify the perpetrators. Everyone’s committed to seeing that that gets done in the right way.”
—This story was last updated at 6:26 p.m.
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