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Everything We Know About The Austin Serial Bomber
The alleged bomber has been identified as Mark Anthony Conditt. Police say he blew himself up as they closed in on him.
The person behind the string of deadly bombings that have rattled Texas this month is dead. He has been identified as Mark Anthony Conditt, according to The Associated Press. The details are still rolling in. Here’s everything we know so far.
He’s a white man
Police have identified Conditt as a 23-year-old white man, as reported by The Wall Street Journal. He is reportedly unemployed and from Pflugerville, Texas.
He blew himself up
Conditt reportedly blew himself up as authorities were closing in on him early Wednesday, according to NBC News. The alleged serial bomber detonated an explosive inside his car after a SWAT team tried to pull him over and arrest him on the shoulder of a highway. An officer suffered minor injuries in the blast.
His death shut down the highway
I-35 was shut down after his death, according to WSBT in Austin. It has since reopened.
A SWAT team fired at him
A SWAT officer fired at him, according to WSBT in Austin. He’s now on administrative leave.
Authorities tracked him down
Developments into the suspect’s identity emerged over the last 36 hours, according to CNN. Conditt began as a person of interest and then over the last day, transformed into a suspect as police tracked him down to a hotel in an Austin suburb.
Surveillance showed him wearing a disguise
Surveillance footage appears to show Conditt at FedEx facility dropping off a package, wearing a blonde wig and what appears to be gardening gloves.
He’s accused of being behind 5 explosions
He is behind the 5 explosions which have killed two people and injured five over the past 19 days. At least two other packages were found by authorities before they could detonate.
There could be more packages
ATF Special Agent in Charge Fred Milanowski said during a press relief that he is "concerned that there may still be other devices out there." Police say his Google search history reveals that he had been researching other addresses in Austin and the surrounding area, according to The Austin American Statesman.
Packages were full of shrapnel
The explosives were all in packages, full of metal shrapnel and nails. Some were discovered in the mail. Others were left in front of homes and one was left in the street with what police believe could be a tripwire.
He may have been homeschooled
Conditt was reportedly homeschooled according to National Public Radio. Later, he attended a community college which he reportedly dropped out of. He has no criminal record.
He may have been conservative
According to blog posts from 2012, found and reported on by The Daily Beast, a man who identified himself as Conditt from Pflugerville, Texas identified himself as conservative. The blogs indicated that person was against gay marriage and abortion but for the death penalty.
His family is cooperative
Police are saying that Conditt's family was unaware of Conditt's alleged connection to the bombings. The family is reportedly being cooperative, according to The Los Angeles Times. A 2013 post by his mother on Facebook shows a picture of Mark just after graduating high school.
His motives have not yet been released
Conditt’s motives have not yet been released. There has been speculation that the explosions were racially motivated, and that maybe he was targeting prominent families of color.
[Photo: Facebook]
