23 March 2018
Mark Anthony Conditt 23, Austin’s serial bomber is dead. He blew himself up as authorities closed in. But the chaos created by his deadly, improvised devices, stretching across dozens of miles, may continue.
Investigators have discovered that Conditt, who had killed two people and terrorized Austin for 19 days, had a list of other targets.
Officials spoke about the dreadful scene that ended the chase by forcing Conditt off the road to prevent him from getting on a freeway. Officers had surrounded the vehicle when Conditt set off the blast sending some of the officers flying backward, with one suffering non-life-threatening injuries.
Conditt was pretty good at evading surveillance cameras, said an investigator, but his one mistake led the law enforcement to him. That was when he walked into Home Depot. Surveillance video of Home Depo that has been obtained by the investigators show Conditt walking into the store wearing a wig and cap, and walking out to a vehicle with a license plate that is connected to his name.
A series of five explosions, that started from 2nd March, sparked fears of a sophisticated bomber deploying devices in Austin.
In announcing the suspect’s death early Wednesday, authorities said they are worried the 24-year-old man allegedly responsible for the string of terror left additional explosives behind.
First explosion, on 2nd March, killed Anthony Stephan House, a construction worker and money manager. Police described the explosion of a package left on his doorstep.
Second victim on March 12, was Draylen Mason. Mason retrieved a package that was left at his door, exploded and killed him, and injured his mother.
Third victim Esperanza Herrera on March 12 may not have been the target but the explosion nearly killed her. Herrera was at her mother’s house when he picked up a package that authorities claimed was meant for another house.
Herrera has lost some fingers in the explosion, and doctors at the Dell Seton Medical Center amputated her leg, said her cousin Joe Torres.
Fourth explosion was on March 19 after being triggered by a trip wire that left two men injured. Authorities called the work of a “sophisticated serial bomber.”
Fifth bomb exploded at the FedEx facility in Schertz on March 20. No one was injured except an employee who complained of ringing in the ears, probably due to concussive blast.
An unexploded package bomb was found at another FedEx facility near Austin.
These series of explosions have left Austiners fairly shaken, and anxious of every parcel outside their home. Authorities in the city had received many calls to report suspicious packages, though none were found to be dangerous.
The black community has raised concerns about authorities moving slow. They believe that there response would have been faster if the bombing occurred on the affluent west side of Austin.
“We know that if these bombings would have happened on the west side, there would have only been one. They would have locked down the community and made sure it wouldn’t happen again.” tweeted Fatima Mann, the executive director of Counter Balance: ATX
‘Can you imagine bombings occurring in McClean, Georgetown, Loudoun or Tyson’s killing and injuring white people and any suspicion of it being a person of color or Muslim.’ tweeted Loudoun County @NAACP Loudoun
Austin police initially classified the first bombing as a suspicious death, not a homicide. “We can’t rule out that Mr. House didn’t construct this himself and accidentally detonate it, in which case it would be an accidental death,” said Assistant Chief Joseph Chacon. Police Chief Brian Manley later apologized for his assistant chief’s comments. “It may have been something that needed to have been evaluated, but it’s not something that needed to be said publicly.”, said Chief Brian Manley.
While the investigation is ongoing, some have pointed out to the silence of the president Trump. Opinion writer Jamil Smith called the acts terrorism and expressed his hope that Trump will not hinder efforts to get to the bottom of the acts. ‘Terrorism is what is happening in Austin, Texas right now. Given the race of the victims thus far and his own willful ignorance of extremist violence’, tweeted Jamil @Jamil Smith
