FACT: Dzhokhar Tsarnaev did not have is backpack on when he was running away

There are some people look this photo:

and claim to see that Dzhokar still has his backpack. He is not wearing a backpack. He is wearing an un-buttoned jacket with a hooded sweater. His left hand is clearly visibly not holding a backpack, and his right arm (blocked by the woman with sunglasses) is in a position of a person running with a normal gait and carrying nothing.

There is no backpack in this photo. He placed it at the foot of Forum restaurant and left it there. It then exploded moments later, killing three people.

FACT: Police often refer to "suspects" as "actors" when describing a witnessed crime

According to conspiracy theorists, the "proof" that the bombing was some kind of false flag staged event performed by "actors" was that Boston Police Chief Ed Davis called the suspect "actors" on television.

Here's the truth: Many police officers actually call suspects "actors" when describing an alleged crime. Here's an article from 2006 that describes the Pennsylvania.

Proof: The Government Has a Video of Dzhokhar Tsarnaev Placing the Second Bomb

The Conspiracy

Troy Crossley has questioned the government's statement in the official complaint against Dzhokhar Tsarnaev that there exists security footage of the younger Tsarnaev placing the bomb in front of the Forum Restaurant at 755 Boylston Street and walking away immediately after the first explosion.

The Truth

While the government has not made this video public (as is their right in an active investigation), there is no reason to believe that such a video is fictional; in fact, there is every reason to believe that this video exists.

First, the government did release several video of both suspects walking around the corner of Gloucester St. and Boylston Street (from the security camera of Whiskey's Bar at 885 Boylston Street) and heading in the direction of Forum Restaurant. There is no doubt that the people in this video are the suspects, including Dzhokhar.

Second, there exists several photos of Dzhokhar Tsarnaev and his brother standing in front of Forum Restaurant, as well as one immediately before the bombing, with his backpack in the exact spot where the explosion occurred. Again, there is no doubt of the identify of the men in this picture, which coincides exactly with the description of the surveillance video mentioned in the official complaint.

So while the government hasn't released the video stated in the complaint, there exists overwhelming evidence that said video exists and describes accurately the actions of Dzhozhar Tsarnaev immedialy before and after the bombings.

Proof: There was no "controlled explosion" before the actual bombings.

The Conspiracy

According to conspiracy theorists, The Boston Globe apparently tweeted that there was to be a "controlled explosion" near the site of the first bombing at 12:53 pm, which was nearly two hours before the bombings occurred. They then claim the tweet, shown in an image below, was deleted.

Conspiracy theorists claim that this tweet proves that the Boston Globe knew about an explosion well before the bombs went off.

The Truth

There was a controlled explosion - but that explosion happened as a result of the marathon bombings, and this tweet actually occurred at 3:53 pm. The screen capture of the tweet above was taken on the west coast of the United States. At 3:53 pm EST (Boston's time zone), it would actually be 12:53 pm on the west coast.

The proof? The Globe didn't delete the tweet. You can see it here:

BREAKING NEWS: Police will have controlled explosion on 600 block on Boylston Street
— The Boston Globe (@BostonGlobe) April 15, 2013

There is no mysterious "controlled explosion." The police were trying to determine if there were any more bombs in the hundreds of bags left behind after the crowd fled the scene.

Proof: Craft International was NOT at the Boston Marathon

Troy Crossley, and other conspiracy theorists (such as Infowars) have consistently pointed to the below image and claimed that the men in black jackets and tan fatigue pants were members of a private military contractor called Craft International.

These men are not mercenaries. They are members of the National Guard.

In fact, the two men depicted in the above photograph, taken by Ben Levine at 2:38pm (one minute before the bombing), as well as those seen on the roof of buildings near the finish line of the marathon before and after the bombings, are members of the Massachusetts National Guard Civil Support Team (CST).

These men are not private mercenaries... they are deployed during the marathon to help with security.

The Massachusetts Civil Support Team was on duty during the Boston Marathon providing security support for the entirety of the race, supported by the CSTs from Rhode Island and New York. This is standard operating procedure for an event the size of the marathon.

After the bombings, The CST rushed in to help with identifying any additional risks, check to see if the bombs were radioactive, etc.

The image of a "suspicious" member of the CST unzipping a backpack was taken after the bombings... proving that they were not part of the bombing.

Notice the broken glass and the first responders heading into help the wounded to the right of the image. The man crouching is a member of the CST assisting in threat assessment, not a potential bomber.

But What About the Hat?

Lots of been made about the first man's hat, which looks like the skull logo of Craft International.

This hat is not a Craft cap  - it's a Punisher cap. Notice that the Craft hat has red text on the back? The Punisher cap (based on a comic book character) has white text on the hat that reads "One Man Army." That's the text that appears on the back of the hat of the this member of the CST. Here's a close up of the Punisher cap:

The back of a Punisher Cap.

Craft International was not at the Boston Marathon, and they were not involved in the bombing. These men were working security at a large public event, and then helped by attempting to determine whether there was any more threat to public safety. They are heroes, not suspects. Even Infowars, one of Troy Crossley's main sources, admitted that these were not Craft members.