Police say a 28-year-old Afghan-American man wanted in connection with the bomb blast in Manhattan over the weekend has been taken into custody after a shoot-out with officers.
Ahmad Khan Rahami, a naturalized U.S. citizen of Afghan origin, was woundеd in the gunfight on September 19 as he sought to escape pursuing officers. He was hospitalized following his capture in Linden, New Jersey, about 30 kilometers outside New York.
Two officers were also slightly wounded in the firefight.
Rahami was confronted by police after they received a call about a man sleeping in a doorway who was later recognized by an officer as the bombing suspect from the September 17 explosion in New York City's Chelsea neighborhood.
The explosion wounded 29 people slightly; all were released from area hospitals within 24 hours of the initial blast.
Federal investigators said tests revealed the bomb contained residue of Tannerite, an explosive often used for target practice that can be obtained from sporting-goods stores.
"We have every reason to believe this was an act of terror," New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said after the arrest.
Local police released on September 19 a photograph of a man identified as Rahami and said they wanted to question him about the Chelsea explosion as well as an unexploded device found a few blocks away.
Investigators also suspected his involvement in an explosion earlier on September 17 in a coastal New Jersey town that had been hosting a fund-raising run for U.S military personnel.
No one was injured in that blast.
Police also believe Rahami was linked to a backpack full of pipe bombs that had been found in another New Jersey city late on September 18.
Those bombs were deactivated, with the exception of one that exploded when a police robot was clipping its wires.
Speaking in New York, U.S. President Barack Obama said officials did not believe there was a connection between the blasts in New York and New Jersey and a September 17 stabbing attack in Minnesota.
News reports said Rahami was born in Afghanistan in 1988.