Austin Police Chief Makes It Official: Serial Bomber On The Loose

AUSTIN, TX — If there were any lingering doubts before about the recent explosions in Austin neighborhoods that have killed two and injured others, the chief of police made it official late Monday morning: There is a serial bomber in the city's midst, and all four exploding packages are connected.

In his second press briefing on Monday, Interim Police Chief Brian Manley said tests on the fourth explosion that took place Sunday evening in South Austin bore similarities to the other three earlier this month. This assessment based on lab analysis all but rules out that Sunday night's bombing was the work of a copycat criminal, he suggested.

"We are clearly dealing with what we expect to be a serial bomber at this point, based on the similarities between now what is the fourth device," Manley told reporters. "And again, as we look at this individual, and the pattern, and what we're looking at here, we will have to determine if we see a specific ideology behind this or something that will lead us, along with our federal partners, to make that decision."

Last night's bombing was different than the other three that have occurred since March 2. Unlike the others, the most recent exploding device was placed along a roadway rather than on a porch or doorsteps like the rest. Also, the triggering device used to detonate the package was a tripwire that was inadvertently set by a pair of bicyclists who just happened upon the object. The other packages detonated only after the victims handled the packages not knowing they were lethal.

The two latest victims, two men in their 20s, weren't seriously hurt and are now listed in good condition after being transported to St. David's South Austin Medical Center for treatment last night. Initial reports listed their injuries as serious, but not life-threatening. A friend of both identified them to the Austin American-Statesman as Will Grote and Colton Mathis.

All things considered, the two men were lucky.

The first blast on March 2 killed 39-year-old Anthony Stephan House — the father of an 8-year-old girl — in Northeast Austin. Ten days later, two additional bombs exploded within hours of each other on a Monday. One of those packages killed 17-year-old Draylen Mason — a promising student who was already an accomplished musician — and injured his mother in their East Austin home. The second package that day injured Esperanza Herrera, 75, in Southeast Austin.

The specter of a tripwire detonating the latest blast suggests a higher level of sophistication for the culprit than the rudimentary makeshift bombs triggered only after they were handled. It also raises the level of anxiety among Austin residents suddenly fearful in what otherwise would be a mundane occurrence of receiving a benign package at their front door. Another key difference: The latest explosive device was placed in a way to target random passersby, rather than the inferred targeting of the previous blasts, the chief noted.

Still, lab analysis yielded unmistakable similarities in the bombs' construction, he added.

"We have seen similarities in the device that exploded here last night and the other three devices that have exploded in Austin starting March 2," Interim Police Chief Brian Manley said. "The big difference in this device, again, is that we believe a tripwire was used in this device."

Christopher Combs, special agent in charge of the San Antonio Field Division for the FBI, said the last device to have detonated contained shrapnel.

The upshot: Nobody is safe, it now seems, and all errant objects are to be viewed with suspicion. Explosions aren't isolated to just one part of the city either, and have taken place across Austin as the map below illustrates.

Police have have sent notices to residents to look out for red flags in receiving packages — those without return addresses, misspellings, excessive postage and the like.But beyond those common-sense appeals, every errant package — an unattended backpack, a box that seems out of place, an unexpected mailing, containers once viewed as innocuous — are now being eyed with fear and trepidation. In an early morning press conference Monday, Manley appealed to residents not to even approach unknown packages but call 911 instead.

"That changes things,” Manley previously said of the tripwire mechanism most recently used. "Our safety message to this point has been involving the handling of packages, and telling this community, ‘Do not handle packages, do not pick up packages, do not disturb packages.’ We now need to have an extra level of vigilance and pay attention to any suspicious device, whether it be a package, a bag, a backpack, anything that looks out of place and please do not approach it.”

The violence also has given rise to confusion and unsubstantiated speculation. Initial media reports on Sunday about two separate bombings proved erroneous. The source of the confusion likely stems from officials' examination of an errant backpack near the site of the most recent blast along the 4800 block of Dawn Song Drive that was assessed as a potential threat before the site was cleared.

Some media outlets also have taken to speculate that the bombings are racially motivated given that the first two victims were black. But the third victim is a Hispanic woman, and the two young men injured on Sunday are Anglo. For his part, Manley has consistently said no ideology has been determined on the part of whoever might be responsible for the bombings. But Manley has stated broadly that no theory is being ruled out, perhaps prompting some media outlets to extrapolate the notion the bombings might be targeting African Americans.

At his second press briefing on Monday, Manley appealed residents in the affected areas that may have home surveillance cameras to make the footage available to them for analysis.

"We would like to reach out to those that live in the Travis Country neighborhood behind us," Manley said. "If you have video surveillance on your house...we want to get your video footage so that we can have that analyzed and ID suspicious persons, vehicles or anything that may be of interest to this investigation."

Residents in possession of video surveillance footage are urged to call police at (512) 974-5210.

The Travis Country neighborhood where the latest explosion occurred on Sunday was still in something of a lock-down mode by Monday afternoon — well past the 10 a.m. estimate previously given by police.

"This neighborhood is still being locked down right now for safety and we expect it to be so until at least 2 p.m. today," Manley said. "We're doing this in an overabundance of caution so that we can keep this neighborhood safe while we process the scene."

The crime scene at the site of Sunday's blast is expansive, and requires more time for evidence gathering, Manley said: "There's still a significant amount of evidence. As you can imagine, with a blast scene like this, the evidence is strewn across quite a significant distance, and it's going to take us a while to methodically go through it and collect this evidence so that we make sure to get it right."

By around 3:30 p.m., life at the Travis Country neighborhood was returning to some semblance of normalcy, with residents allowed back onto key arteries Eagle Feather Drive and Travis County Circle on a limited basis, according to police. Residents there are now able to access their neighborhood from Southwest Parkway, to Republic of Texas Boulevard and to Travis Country Circle, but Republic of Texas Boulevard remained closed beyond Travis Country Circle late Monday afternoon.

More than 500 law enforcement officials working on the serial bombing case — with the FBI, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the Texas Department of Public Safety — have now been joined with bomb technicians from the San Antonio and Houston police department to help the investigation, Manley said Monday.

Yet despite such an investigative arsenal and formidable manpower, no suspect has emerged in the bombings. Thus far powerless to stop future incidents of violence from occurring, law enforcement officials are relegated to the role of advice givers to fearful residents.

"What we want to reinforce is the safety message that we've been putting out to this community for quite some time," Manley said. "In the past, we've been talking about the importance of not touching suspicious packages — not moving packages, not handling packages. The belief we're now dealing with is someone who's using trip wires shows a higher level of sophistication, a higher level of skill, and so now what we're imploring the community to do is if you see any suspicious object or item that looks out of place, do not even approach it but instead call 911 and report that to the police department so we can send folks out to check that and ensure that it is safe. So again, do not approach these suspicious items — anything that you may see -- whether it be a bag, a backpack, a box."

Ironically, Austin was suffused with a celebratory vibe the past two weeks with the annual SXSW festival that concluded on Sunday. The massive event draws tens of thousands of people — film mavens, music lovers, gamers, techies and intellectuals — from all over the world for two weeks of jam-packed venues appealing to the senses. Now, that party mode has been supplanted with anxiety in a city now gripped in fear.

The bombings have put the city in an unwanted spotlight, with the violent incidents commanding national headlines. The locale of the violence has given twisted comic fodder to critics of Austin — a city some mistakenly, myopically view merely as landscape inhabited by hipsters and slackers living in a town that wears its unofficial motto — "Keep Austin Weird" — like a badge of honor.

But Austin is much more diverse than all that, and people have died. A mother has lost her son, and an 8-year-old girl has lost her father. Despite the inexplicable heartlessness of some observers, the same spirit of camaraderie and empathy so touchingly seen when Hurricane Harvey made its deadly landfall last summer has taken hold here as people here look after each other — strangers helping strangers, neighbors being watchful — in helping keep their fellow residents safe.

University of Texas at Austin officials have taken to updating the students there of the bombings, urging those on campus to stay alert and tell others of the incidents. "When you get on campus this morning ASK your friends if they’ve heard about the bombings," campus police implored students via Twitter. "TELL them about the incidents. CALL 9-1-1 to report suspicious items. SPREAD the word. We must look out for one another. #BeSafe and be informed. Follow @Austin_Police for alerts."

With the same speed with which he secured urgent financial assistance and aid for hurricane victims, Gov. Greg Abbott said Monday he's released $265,500 in emergency funding for the Austin Police Department (APD) and the Texas Ranger Bomb Response Team to purchase seven portable x-ray systems for use in bomb detection and responding to suspicious package investigations. These x-ray systems are used by bomb technicians on scene and provide clear visual evidence for rapid assessment of a package’s safety, the governor explained in a press release.

“I want to ensure everyone in the Austin region and the entire state that Texas is committed to providing every resource necessary to make sure these crimes are solved as quickly as possible,” Abbott said in a prepared statement. “I offer my sincere thanks to law enforcement at the local, state and federal level for their efforts to ensure that those responsible for these attacks are apprehended and brought to justice.”

And the YWCA is making its considerable resources available to those traumatized by the bombings, offering anyone who needs counseling or comfort to avail themselves of such resources.

"During grief-stricken times, whether due to natural disaster or man-made violence, a community often unites.," officials wrote in a press release. "Although people suffer with personal grief and loss on a daily basis, when the magnitude is felt by many all at once the hopelessness, fear, anger, and sadness is multiplied."

Executive Director Ángela-Jo Touza-Medina expounded on the range of resources the group she leads offers: “The YWCA Greater Austin stands in unity with the teachers, staff, families of East Austin College Prep, and the community-at-large as we battle through the senseless death of a 17-year-old as a result of intentional violence,” she said. “YWCA Greater Austin is available to address community trauma and inequity as needed. This has been our role for 111 years. We are not new to this work, we are true to it."

Late last week, several of the YWCA’s therapists and interns responded by providing crisis support at East Austin College Prep and will continue to be available as needed, especially as people are returning from spring break, Touza-Medina added. YWCA Greater Austin staff is available to offer free therapy services for staff, students, neighborhoods, or families who may feel the need for on-going therapy to deal with this loss or shock, she said.

Groups will be available at YWCA Greater Austin (2015 S IH-35, Ste 110, Austin, Texas, 78741) on Tuesday, March 20 at 9:00 a.m., 12:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. and Wednesday 12:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. to those needing professional counselors to negotiate around grief or anxiety. Those needing individual and/or family services, can call 512-326-1222, option 2. Evening and daytime appointments are available Monday-Saturday, and counselors fluent in English/Spanish services are at the ready, with those fluent in other languages easily dispatched.

“Events like the recent bombings in our community, often trigger fear and uncertainty," explained YWCA Clinical Director, Laura Gomez-Horton, LCSW. "They can also re-traumatize individuals that have lived violent experiences in their past."

The community meeting for March has been changed to one reflecting the current times in discussing the need for unity to ensure overall safety. It's scheduled on March 30 at 12:30 p.m. at 2015 S IH-35, Ste 110, and is free and open to the public. Those wishing to donate to the YWCA to sustain such work can do so by visiting www.ywcaaustin.org/donate.asp. A mere $10 allows a person in crisis to participate in a group therapy session, and $25 helps a person, couple or a family access a family crisis counseling session, officials noted.

Austin might be easy to mock by those not on ground level, but in times of crises, this is a town that pulls together just like Texans pitch in after every natural disaster. While this latest tragedy is man-made, the collective hand of altruism is already outstretched. While striving to keep their neighbors safe, residents here know that this too shall pass.

Watch Manley's full press briefing below:

Related stories:

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Austin Police Update Explosive Packages Probe, ID Dead Teen

Amid SXSW Revelry, 3 House Bombings Put Austin On Edge

Man Dies In North Austin Home Explosion

Man Who Died In North Austin Explosion Identified

East Austin Home Explosion Kills Teen, Seriously Injures Woman

2nd Package Explosion Monday Injures Woman In South Austin Home

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>>> Image: Police tape marks off the neighborhood where a package bomb went off on March 19, 2018, in Austin, Texas. Police are investigating the bombing which injured two and is the fourth similar bombing in three weeks in the Austin area. (Photo by Drew Anthony Smith/Getty Images)