Authorities Said to Find Female DNA on Boston Bomb Piece

Investigators have found female DNA on a fragment from one of the two bombs used in the attack on the Boston Marathon two weeks ago, according to a U.S. official briefed on the probe.

The genetic material may have come from a number of sources and its discovery doesnt necessarily mean that additional people were involved beyond the two brothers suspected in the bombing, said the official, who asked not to be identified in discussing an open case.

The DNA find emerged as authorities continue to investigate whether the suspects, Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, had help in planning or carrying out the April 15 attack. So far, according to a second U.S. official who asked not to be identified, theres no evidence of such assistance.

Among those under scrutiny is Tamerlans wife, Katherine Russell Tsarnaev. Agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation visited her parents home in North Kingstown, Rhode Island, yesterday and took a DNA sample from her, according to one of the U.S. officials briefed on the probe.

Amato DeLuca, a lawyer for Katherine Tsarnaev, said in an e-mail yesterday that she was continuing to assist in the investigation in any way she can. Last week, he said in an interview that she knew nothing about the attacks beforehand and was as shocked as anybody when they happened.

Jason Pack, an FBI spokesman, declined to say whether Katherine Tsarnaev was cooperating voluntarily and said that the bureau cant discuss specific aspects of the case.

Tamerlan Tsarnaev was killed in a police shootout April 19. He and his brother are suspected by U.S. authorities of setting off the bombs at the Boston Marathon finish line that killed three people and wounded 260.

Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, 19, was apprehended on April 19 after a manhunt that paralyzed the Boston metropolitan area. He was found hiding in a boat in the backyard of a Watertown, Massachusetts, home and taken to the hospital for treatment of gunshot wounds.

The younger Tsarnaev, now being held at a federal prison west of Boston for inmates needing medical care, is charged with using and conspiring to use a weapon of mass destruction.

As part of the investigation, the FBI wants to interview family members including the suspects parents, who are in Russia, said an official familiar with the probe who asked not to be identified. Friends, associates and others who were part of the suspects lives are also being sought for interviews, the official said.

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Authorities Said to Find Female DNA on Boston Bomb Piece