(RepublicanInformer.com)- In the days leading up to Monday’s Boston Marathon, it was revealed that the FBI had joined state law enforcement agencies in the investigation of the theft of Boston Police Department uniforms that were stolen from a Weymouth business in late March.
The Weymouth Police Department announced last week that they had joined forces with the FBI to investigate the theft from Andrea’s Police and Fire Supply in Weymouth sometime between March 27 and 28. The items stolen include four dress uniforms and a leather jacket.
Ahead of Monday’s Marathon, the FBI announced a $5,000 reward for information leading to the arrest involved in the theft.
Shortly after the Weymouth Police Department posted the announcement on Facebook, users expressed concern that the stolen uniforms could be used to infiltrate security at the Boston Marathon. Though it has been nine years since the infamous Boston Marathon Bombing that killed three and injured more than 260, the timing of the Weymouth Police Department’s announcement had people in a panic.
During a press conference to discuss the city’s safety precautions ahead of Monday’s Marathon, Boston Police Superintendent-in-Chief Gregory Long was asked how the public should respond if they see someone they believe is “posing as somebody else.”
Long urged anyone who might see someone dressed in a uniform or wearing a vest who is acting strangely or suspiciously to call 911, saying it was better to “err on the side of caution.”
However, Long said that there had been no credible threat to the race. He said spectators and participants should expect heavy security, including bag checks, camera surveillance, police observation points, and a heavy presence of both uniformed and plainclothes officers.
In the end, Monday’s Boston Marathon went off without hitch.
The suspect in the March uniform theft remains at large.
