Austin bomber, Mark Anthony Conditt blows himself up in his car as agents closed in – Cops had released CCTV images of white male posting two devices at FedEx office, targeting people of color
Austin bomber, Mark Anthony Conditt, 24, kills himself with seventh device as cops surrounded his car at 2 am on Wednesday
Police had just released images of male Caucasian posting packaged devices at FedEx office targeting people of color
Images captured by CCTV at a FedEx office in south Austin emerged showed the serial bombing suspect dropping off two packages around 7.30pm on Sunday
One of the packages mailed by the 24-year-old blonde suspect later exploded on a conveyor belt shortly after midnight at the San Antonio FedEx facility
Police tracked the suspect to a hotel in the Round Rock area, North of Austin, using CCTV, store receipts and cell phone data
The out-of-work computer repair technician identified as a conservative in favor of the death penalty and was against gay marriage and abortion
During a three week bombing spree the suspect targeted ethnic minorities – Two people were killed and six injured in bombings that began on March 2
Authorities are searching for motives and possible accomplices of the man who previously, was unknown authorities
Police warned more bombs could still be out there as they do not know the bomber’s final movements
Austin bomber Mark Anthony Conditt killed himself before he could be arrested
The Austin bomber is dead after he blew himself up in his car as police and FBI agents tried to arrest him in the early hours of Wednesday.
The bomber, a 24-year-old white male who was from central Texas, killed himself and injured an officer when he detonated a seventh device inside his car as police surrounded him 18 miles north of the city around 2 am, local time.
Despite the death police have warned that more bombs could still be out there because they do not know where the bomber has been in the last 24 hours, and asked the public to remain vigilant.
Police said Conditt
Conditt, who previously worked as a computer repair technician, used ‘exotic’ batteries ordered online from Asia to make his bombs and bought some equipment from a local Home Depot store. It is believed to have made the bombs himself, although authorities are trying to figure out if he had accoplices
Neighbors described Conditt as a quiet, studious young man who came from a ‘good Christian’ family. His 2012 blog posts indicate he was in favor of capital punishment and was against gay marriage and abortion
The death comes after CCTV taken at a FedEx office in south Austin emerged showing the Conditt dropping off two packages around 7.30pm on Sunday. Police tracked the bomber to the Round Rock area using CCTV [photo], store receipts and cell phone data
Conditt blew himself up after he was surrounded by SWAT team members. Law enforcement vehicles box in the wreckage
The out of work computer repair man had targeted black and Latino neighborhoods. Anthony House, 39, and Draylen Mason, 17, both African American, were the first two victims. Mason’s mother was also badly hurt as they opened the package in their kitchen.
Leads obtained over the last 24 to 36 hours brought police to a hotel on Interstate 35 in the suburb of Round Rock, north of Austin, where they believed the suspect to be located. As authorities waited for tactical vehicles to arrive, the suspected bomber, identified only as 24-year-old white man, drove away and stopped in a ditch, Austin Police Chief Brian Manley said in an early morning press conference.
When members of the SWAT team approached, the suspected bomber detonated an explosive device inside his car, Manley said. One officer was knocked back and injured, and a second officer fired his gun, the chief said.
The suspect, who sustained significant injuries from the explosion, died, Manley said.
Mark Anthony Conditt [center], and his parents Danene and Pat Conditt with his younger siblings
Austin serial bomber is dead after blowing himself as police and FBI agents swooped in to arrest him at the red roof inn several miles north of Austin in the early hours of Wednesday morning
The suspect was identified in the past 24 hours based on information police gathered after the suspect shipped an explosive device from a FedEx store in Sunset Valley, a suburb surrounded by Austin.
Store receipts also showed suspicious transactions, and a search warrant on his Google search history showed suspicious searches, the official said.
Austin Police Chief Brian Manley said officers used CCTV, cell phone data, witness accounts and store receipts to track the bomber to a Red Roof Inn north of Austin, using cell phone technology.
The man who blew himself up after driving his car into a ditch overnight police say, was behind all of the bombings in Austin, but they do not yet have a motive.
Police warned that more devices could still be out there because authorities do not know where the man has been in the last 24 hours
As police approached the suspect’s car he detonated a device, killing himself and wounding an officer. He was described as a 24-year-old white male, but has not been named
A motive is still unknown, and it is still too soon to determine whether the suspect worked alone, Manley said.
Images captured by CCTV at a FedEx office in south Austin emerged showed the serial bombing suspect dropping off two packages around 7.30pm on Sunday
One of the two packages he is shown carrying [photo], later exploded as it was being moved between conveyor belts, while another was stopped near Austin airport and later confirmed to contain a bomb.
Tracked down after being identified as being responsible for five explosions in Austin and a sixth device that was stopped before it detonated.
The bomber’s death comes just hours after CBS published CCTV showing the suspect at a Fed-Ex office in the south of the city. The images show a man wearing a disguise and delivering two packages to the store around 7.30pm on Sunday.
One of the packages subsequently exploded on a conveyor belt at a FedEx sorting facility outside of San Antonio in Schertz. The other was intercepted at a facility near Austin airport and was later confirmed to contain a bomb.
Law enforcement sources said the tipping point in the investigation came around 9pm Tuesday after the CCTV footage emerged. That led police to the suspect’s home and allowed them to collect cell phone data which tracked the man to his hotel.
Police say they tracked the bomber to the Round Rock area using CCTV, store receipts and cell phone data. Police arrived at the North Austin hotel and found the suspect sitting inside his vehicle so officers called for backup in an attempt to bring him in peacefully.
As reinforcements were arriving the man attempted to drive away, forcing officers to confront him on a frontage road leading on to the I-35 highway.
As police approached the vehicle the man detonated a bomb, killing himself and throwing a nearby officer back, who received minor injuries.
One officer fired shots at the vehicle, leading to initial reports that the bomber had been shot dead.
FBI agents and police confronted the suspect on Wednesday morning before a pursuit and detonation of a device which killed him
Two more package bombs then exploded further south on March 12. Draylen Mason, 17, was killed and his mother was wounded after they opened a package in their kitchen.
The first two bombs killed black men and investigators believed that the third, which injured a 75-year-old Latina woman, may have been intended for a black family’s home – raising the possibility they were a hate crime. A 75-year-old Hispanic woman named by family as Esperanza Herrera was severely injured when a package bomb exploded at her home a few hours later.
On Sunday two men, both white in their 20s were badly injured when they triggered a ‘near-invisible’ tripwire linked to another explosive device.
Another person was wounded at a FedEx facility when a package exploded while moving between conveyor belts.
Previous victims: Anthony Stephan House, [left], and Draylen Mason, [right] both died when package bombs were left at their respective homes. In all, two people were killed and six injured in five explosions that began on March 2.
Authorities also got information from Google and from the suspect’s computer history that confirmed the suspect was looking at information on where to go to ship devices.
It is not known if the suspect was planning to deliver a seventh device when police stopped him. Chief Manley said it is not clear why he tried to leave the parking lot.
The suspect has not yet been identified because he has extensive injuries. Once police have established his identity the man’s next of kin will be informed before his name is released.
Austin police are not naming Texas bomb suspect, even as cops and reporters are outside his home. The location has not been released and the man will not be identified until his next of kin have been informed, police said
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