Texas attack: Police warn bomb threat not yet over
POLICE: TEXAS SERIAL BOMBER MADE VIDEO CONFESSION BEFORE BLOWING HIMSELF UP
The suspect in the deadly bombings that terrorised Austin blew himself up early on Wednesday as authorities closed in on him, bringing a grisly end to a three-week manhunt. But police warned that more bombs could be out there.
Mark Conditt, 23, an unemployed man from the Austin suburb of Pflugerville, detailed how he made all seven bombs that have been accounted for — five that exploded in public, one that was recovered before it went off, and a seventh that he detonated as police rushed his vehicle early on Wednesday.
The Texas man made a 25-minute video “confession” on his phone, which authorities recovered after he blew himself up as officers closed in to make an arrest.
“He does not at all mention anything about terrorism, nor does he mention anything about hate, but instead it is the outcry of a very challenged young man, talking about challenges in his personal life,” Austin Police Chief Brian Manley told reporters.
“I would classify this as a confession,” Manley said.
Target list recovered
Conditt, who had never before been in trouble with the law, killed two people and wounded five with a campaign of violence that began on March 2, authorities said.
Police recovered a “target list” of addresses for future attacks, the Los Angeles Times reported, citing US Representative Michael McCaul of Texas, the Republican chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee. But the video indicated there were no more devices unaccounted for.
Conditt likely made the video between 9pm and 11pm on Tuesday. According to Manley, Conditt said he believed police were getting close to him, and he was right.
Authorities filed a criminal complaint and issued an arrest warrant around that time.
Police zeroed in on Conditt earlier in the week and located his vehicle at a hotel on Interstate 35 in the suburb of Round Rock. Officers were waiting for armoured vehicles to arrive before moving in for an arrest when his vehicle began to drive away, Austin Police Chief Brian Manley said at a news conference.
Authorities followed the vehicle, which ran into a ditch on the side of the road, he said.
When members of the SWAT team approached, the suspect detonated an explosive device inside the vehicle, the police chief said. The blast knocked one officer back, and a second officer fired his weapon, Manley said.
A law enforcement official provided the dead man’s name. The official, who has been briefed on the investigation, spoke on the condition of anonymity because the official was not authorised to discuss the case publicly.
When members of the SWAT team approached, the suspect detonated an explosive device inside the vehicle, the police chief said.