Police Superintendent Jody Weis says he has spoken with several authorities in New York, and he understands that the bomb that was planted in the SUV in Times Square Saturday was a fairly primitive, simple device that he believes would not necessarily be linked to an overseas terrorist group.
ABC News, however, is now reporting that authorities in New York believe the bomber may have links to radical elements overseas, and, in fact, could be part of a larger plot in this country. Regardless, however, Weis says he has spoken with FBI officials and does not believe there is any link to Chicago.
"There is nothing uncovered at this point in time that would specify Chicago as a potential target or lead us to believe that an attack in Chicago is imminent. There is no correlation to Chicago at this time whatsoever," said Weis.
Weis was with the FBI before taking over the Chicago Police Department, and had experience dealing with terrorist threats.
Police say an alert citizen pointed out the SUV that contained the bomb in New York to authorities.
While there is no apparent connection to Chicago, police are in contact with the FBI and homeland security. They also have an officer assigned to monitor national operations in Washington and a police partner in the joint terrorism task force.
Weis says he has given no specific instructions to Chicago police since there is no threat to the city. He does, however, warn all officers and private citizens to continue to be vigilant and to be aware of anything that might be out of place.
