How a half-eaten burrito led to arrest of suspect charged with firebombing in US

Investigators in the United States revealed that they have nabbed a 29-year-old man after collecting DNA from a partially eaten burrito, which has linked him to the 2022 Mother's Day firebombing of an anti-abortion group in Wisconsin.

The man has been charged with one felony count of attempting to cause damage by means of fire or an explosive. When the attacktook place, no one from the group was in the office and no injuries were reported.

The office of the United States attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin in Madison noted that the man, identified as Hridindu Sankar Roychowdhury, was arrested on Tuesday (March 28) at the Logan International Airport in Boston.

Matthew G Olsen, who is the assistant attorney general of the national security division of the Justice Department, said in a statement: "According to the complaint, Mr. Roychowdhury used an incendiary device in violation of federal law in connection with his efforts to terrorise and intimidate a private organisation."

Olsen commended the "commitment and professionalism" of law enforcement personnel who worked exhaustively to ensure that justice is served.

How the DNA was collected?

The court documents mentioned the complaint, which divulged details of the case. Last year on Mother's Day, May 8, officials responded to an active fire at an office building located in Madison, Wisconsin early in the morning.

Once they were inside the building, they observed a mason jar under a broken window. The jar was broken, and the lid and screw top was burned black.

The court document revealed that police also saw a purple disposable lighter near the mason jar and on the opposite wall from the window, the police saw another mason jar with the lid on and a blue cloth tucked into the top. They said that the cloth was singed. The jar was about half full of a clear fluid that smelled like an accelerant.

WATCH |United Nations seeks court clarity on Climate change obligations

During the investigation, law enforcement collected DNA from the scene of the attack.

The officialsidentified Roychowdhury as a possible suspect in March this year and asked the local police officers to observe him.

They recovered the leftover food and related items when Roychowdhury disposed of the food in a public trash can and collected DNA from the food. Court documents state that the "law enforcement retrieved the bag from the trash. The contents of the bag included a quarter portion of a partially-eaten burrito wrapped in waxed paper."

The forensic biologist found the sample from the trash can was matching with the DNA evidence recovered from the attack scene.

(With inputs from agencies)

WATCH WION LIVE HERE