Austin bomber suspect has reportedly blown himself up

A MAN police suspect carried out a string of fatal bombing incidents’ in the US has reportedly blown himself up after cops tracked him down and tried to arrest him.

The man, dubbed the ‘Austin bomber’ who had been on the run after a series of linked bombings in Texas, is said to have detonated a device before gunfire was heard along a busy highway in the early hours of Wednesday local time, reports KVUE.
FBI agents and police tracked the man, who is not yet known, to the Round Rock area in Texas, using cell phone technology, CCTV and receipts.

There were conflicting reports as to whether the suspect was killed by an explosive device he detonated himself or by shots fired by police officers, but authorities are yet to confirm details.

It comes after five explosions in the Austin area since March 2. Two people have been killed and four others seriously wounded as part of the bombings.

It came after a bomb containing nails and shrapnel that was destined for an address in Austin, Texas, exploded at a FedEx Corp distribution centre in San Antonio, injuring one employee.

That blast came two days after the latest of four powerful homemade bombs set off in Austin this month, which killed two people and injured six more in what police warned appeared to be the work of a serial bomber.

The package exploded shortly after midnight local time at a distribution facility in Schertz, Texas, outside of San Antonio, about 105km south of Austin, the San Antonio Fire Department said on Twitter.

The package was on a conveyor belt when it detonated. One worker reported ringing in her ears after the blast. She was treated and released from a hospital.

Texas Attorney-General Ken Paxton told KXAN that the package was being mailed from Austin back to Austin.

The first three were parcel bombs dropped off in front of homes on Austin’s east side, with the fourth an apparent trip-wire device that went off on the city’s west side on Sunday.

The devices were similar in construction, suggesting they were the work of the same bomb maker, officials said.

Anthony Stephan House, 39, died on March 2 and Draylen Mason, 17, died on March 12 when package bombs were left at their respective homes.

Police originally pointed to possible hate crimes, but the victims were black, Hispanic and white and from different parts of the city.