Accused Marathon Bomber and Former Watertown Man Committed Waltham Murders

Accused Boston Marathon bomber Tamerlan Tsarnaev and his associate Ibragim Todashev, formerly of Watertown, were responsible for the 2011 murders of three men in a Waltham home, according to NBC News.

Brendan Mess, Erik Weissman and Raphael Teken were found murdered in a Harding Avenue home on Sept. 12, 2011. According to the NBC News report, the crime started as a drug ripoff, but Tsarnaev and Todashev killed the three men after realizing that the victims could identify them. 

Tsarnaev and Todashev, a Chechen, were friends, according to the Washington Post.

The new development in the case comes after Federal Bureau of Investigation agents shot and killed Todashev in the early hours of May 22 as they were questioning him for his role in the murders and possible link to the Marathon bombing. Todashev was reportedly about to sign a written confession when he suddenly attacked the agent. The Washington Post also reported the confession implicated Tsarnaev.

Todashev is not believed to have played a role in the bombings, according to NBC News. Todashev previously lived in Watertown, according to an Associated Press report in Time Magazine.

In the days after the Boston Marathon bombing, Tamerlan’s name emerged as a possible suspect because of his friendship with Mess. Tamerlan, Mess and Todashev were mixed martial arts fighters at an Allston gym, according to ABC News.

Investigators developed “mounting evidence” that Tamerlan was involved in the murders, including forensics and cell phone records. Authorities also found Todashev’s phone number in Tamerlan’s cell phone, according to ABC News.

Also, investigators have not ruled out the possibility that Tsarnaev’s brother, Dzhokar, played a role in the murders, according to the New York Times. Evidence has also indicated Dzhokar played a role in the murders.