Bombing Suspect Blows Himself Up During Police Confrontation
A man who has been suspected of terrorizing Austin Texas in a series of bombings has died Wednesday morning by blowing himself up in his own vehicle as police officers closed in on him, multiple law enforcement officials told reporters.
The suspect has been identified by law enforcement officials as 23-year-old Mark Anthony Conditt.
Investigators are currently looking into whether any more bombs remain and if he acted alone.
Austin Police officers were working all day and night with 350 agents to catch Conditt.
Authorities tracked down Conditt to a hotel in Round through his records such as receipts, internet searches, witness sketches and surveillance footage showing him delivering packages to a FedEx store, officials said.
Police has the hotel surrounded early Wednesday when Conditt got inside his vehicle and drove away. The police pursued him. That is when he got into a ditch and blew himself up, police said. The blast from the explosion injured a SWAT officer.
“We do not understand what motivated him to do what he did,” said Austin Police Chief, Brian Manley.
Even though the suspect is dead, law enforcement officials cautioned that there might still be planted bombs that have not yet been detonated. “We still need to remain vigilant,” said Manley. “We do not know where he has been in the past 24 hours. The investigation is still underway, so we cannot say that this was an individual acting on their own,” he added.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott referred to Conditt as the “mastermind” behind the bombing and also believed he may have had help.
Police believe that Conditt was responsible for around five explosions that injured two people and killed five others in Austin March 2.
The first three explosions involved cardboard packages that were left in front porches and front yards. Police say the packages were not delivered by postal services such as UPS and FedEx.
Those blasts, one on March 2 and two on March 12, killed or wounded three African-Americans and one Hispanic person.This took place in east Austin where many of the residents are minorities. Some there believe that the attacks might have been racially motivated.
The fourth blast took place March 18, where a device was triggered by a tripwire, injuring two white men.
The fifth explosion happened early Tuesday at the FedEx sorting facility near San Antonio.
President Donald Trump praised law enforcement officials in a tweet for tracking down and identifying the suspect. In the tweet, he tweeted “AUSTIN BOMBING SUSPECT IS DEAD. Great job by law enforcement and all concerned.”
Austin Mayor Steve Adler praised the law enforcement officials on “Today”: “As a community, we’re just really relieved and just incredibly thankful for this army of law enforcement that had been in our community for the last week or so.”