AUSTIN, Texas – Austin residents and authorities have been on high alert in recent weeks due to a string of explosions in the area.
The first deadly explosion occurred March 2 in north Austin, killing Anthony Stephan House.
House, 39, picked up a package that was placed outside his home overnight.
On March 12, two bombs went off in east Austin, killing 17-year-old Draylen Mason and critically injuring 75-year-old Esperanza Herrera.
Mason found a package on the front step of his home and it exploded when he brought it inside, also injuring his mother, who is in stable condition.
The bomb that injured Herrera went off around noon leaving her in critical condition.
None of the three packages were delivered by services like UPS, FedEx or the U.S. Postal Service, according to police.
Both House and Mason are relatives of prominent members of Austin's African-American community, The Washington Post reported. House was the stepson of Freddie Dixon, a former pastor at a historic black church in Austin, the Post said. Dixon and his wife are close friends with Mason's family, according to the teenager's grandmother, Lavonne Mason. Read more on that here.
On Sunday, Austin police were dispatched to southwest Austin after reports of another explosion triggered by a trip wire.
APD Press Conference: Chief asking for anyone in the Travis Country neighborhood to submit video surveillance if they have any. Neighborhood will be under lock down until 2 p.m.
— KSAT 12 (@ksatnews) March 19, 2018
Two men in their 20s were injured while biking through a residential neighborhood and taken to St. David's South Austin Medical Center with serious, but non-life-threatening injuries.
Trevor Weldon, 26, was arrested in connection with a bomb threat that canceled an SXSW concert Austin city officials said Sunday.
SAPD bomb techs, trained sniffing dog headed to Austin, Chief McManus says
Weldon allegedly messaged a threat to the concert venue, though authorities found nothing suspicious on-site. If convicted, he could get up to 10 years in prison. Read more about this incident here.
Authorities have addressed more than 400 leads in the bombings and have responded to 735 calls for suspicious packages Austin Police Chief Brian Manley announced at a press conference Sunday.
I am asking our community to pay close attention to any suspicious device whether it be a package, a bag, a backpack or anything that looks out of place, DO NOT approach it! Call 9-1-1 immediately! Also remember DO NOT move, touch or open unexpected/suspicious packages! pic.twitter.com/jvyVB5I7SX
— Chief Brian Manley (@Chief_Manley) March 19, 2018
“There's a certain level of skill and sophistication that whoever is doing this has, and ... we are hoping to use the evidence we have to track them down based on what we are seeing on all three scenes that seem to be consistent,” Manley told KXAN.
San Antonio Police Chief William McManus is sending two bomb techs and a bomb-sniffing dog from the San Antonio Police Department bomb squad to Austin to help with the investigation. They will remain there for as long as they are needed McManus said.
These are the indicators of a possible mail bomb, tainted mail
In a press conference Monday, McManus said he’s never seen anything like this in his career.
"No suspect or suspects have been identified at this time,” Manley said Monday morning at a press conference in Austin.
The APD is still trying to determine if the bombings are terror or hate-related.
More than 350 FBI agents have been brought in to help with the investigation and a $115,000 reward is available for any information that leads to an arrest.
Update on explosion investigation with Chief Manley https://t.co/uMdIGx03Aj
— Austin Police Dept (@Austin_Police) March 19, 2018