(CNN) -- A suspect in a wave of bombing attacks in Austin killed himself inside his car with an explosive device early Wednesday as authorities closed in, police said.

Since the bombings started on March 2, investigators frantically searched for clues, calling the attacks the work of a"serial bomber" who increasingly changed tactics. The bombings killed two people and left the Texas capital terrorized with fear for 19 days.
• In the past 36 hours, law enforcement received information directing them to a person of interest, who ultimately became a suspect.
• Surveillance teams tracked the suspect's vehicle to a hotel in Round Rock, north of Austin. As police waited on tactical units, the vehicle left the hotel.
• SWAT approached the vehicle and the suspect detonated a bomb, killing himself and injuring a SWAT member.
• A SWAT officer fired his weapon at the suspect after an officer was knocked down by the blast. It's unclear whether the officer shot the suspect.
• The suspect is a 24-year-old white man, and authorities don't know whether he acted alone or what his motive was.
• He is responsible for all the incidents in Austin, Austin Police Chief Brian Manley said.
• "This is the culmination of three very long weeks in our community," Manley said.
• He urged residents to be vigilant, saying they don't know where the bomber has been for the past 24 hours and if he sent additional packages.
• "Austin bombing suspect is dead. Great job by law enforcement and all concerned!," President Donald Trump tweeted.

In the latest incident,a package exploded at a FedEx sorting center near San Antonio on Tuesday, and a second unexploded bomb was discovered on the same day at another FedEx facility near Austin.

Those two packages are connected to four previous bombings that left two people dead. FedEx said the person who sent the package that exploded Tuesday also shipped a second one that was turned over to law enforcement officials.

FedEx said it provided authorities with "extensive evidence" from its security system on the packages and the person who shipped them.

In the incident near San Antonio, the device detonated on an automatic conveyor, Police Chief Michael Hansen said. A female employee was treated on site and released. The FedEx facility was not the intended target.

A possible explosion reported Tuesday night at a Goodwill store in Austin turned out to be unrelated. In that incident, an employee was injured by two "artillery simulators" in a donation box, said Ely Reyes, Austin's assistant police chief. The employee was treated and released from a hospital, Reyes said.

With every change in the bomber's tactic, Austin residents are getting increasingly nervous.

Grocery stores, apartment buildings and restaurants have been evacuated at a moment's notice as investigations intensify.

"This is terrorizing the city of Austin," Rep. Michael McCaul told President Donald Trump on Tuesday.

As investigators search for answers, they are checking the cameras at the facilities from Tuesday's incidents, the source said.

Investigators believe the same person is behind all the devices, the source said, adding that the devices have a lot of consistencies. They are similar in the way they are made and use the same items, including a "mouse trap" or a "close pin" switch, according to the source.

"We made one to show everyone what it looks like and we did it in an hour," the source said. The the bombmaker may have taken longer to do it to avoid blowing themselves up, according to the source.

The level of bombmaking skill doesn't necessarily point to military experience, the source added.

Investigators said the package that was found intact Tuesday may yield some clues.

"Now we have the blueprint and possible DNA on the inside of the bomb. So teams are working to render it safe and then look for DNA," the source said. The outside of the package would have been touched by employees at the store where it was dropped off and by the bombmaker, the source said.

The bombmaker may have been wearing gloves.

Of the four previous explosions in Austin, the first three involved cardboard packages left in front yards or on porches. They weren't delivered by the US Postal Service or services such as UPS or FedEx, police say.

Those three explosions -- one on March 2 and two more on March 12 -- killed or wounded three African-Americans and one Hispanic person. They happened in east Austin areas with predominantly minority residents. Some residents expressed concern the attacks might have been racially-motivated.

The first explosion killed 39-year-old Anthony Stephan House on March 2. The second blast on March 12 killed 17-year-old Draylen Mason. The third blast happened several hours later and critically injured a 75-year-old woman.

Those three blasts all happened after someone left explosives-laden packages on the victims' doorsteps.

In the fourth blast, a device was triggered by a tripwire, injuring two white men in a predominantly white area.

Police have not ruled out the possibility that those bombings could be hate crimes. They urged residents to pay attention to their surroundings, and not approach or touch anything that looks suspicious.</s>I Got a Message for the Austin Package Bomber ...

Dan Rather Has a Message For Austin Package Bomber

The violent jackass ﻿behind the deadly Austin package bombings is picking on the wrong city, and the wrong citizens ... according to Dan Rather, who has a home there.

The veteran newsman is a born and bred Texan, so when we got him Tuesday in NYC ... he had some tough talk for whoever's responsible for the tragic bombings. The most recent one went off early Tuesday morning at a FedEx near San Antonio, but the package was bound for Austin.

Rather says the Texas capital is overflowing with smart, young people who don't have patience for prejudice. Cops think the suspect might be targeting black citizens -- but Rather says the bomber's made a serious miscalculation.

As they say, don't mess with Texas ... and Dan says that's especially true in Austin.</s>Package addressed to Austin explodes at FedEx facility in Schertz

A packaged destined for an address in Austin exploded inside a FedEx distribution facility outside of San Antonio, law enforcement sources tell CBS Austin.

The package detonated around 12:25 am at the facility in Schertz, TX. Sources said the package was moving from an elevated conveyor belt to a lower section when it exploded.

A woman working near the package was treated for a headache but was not seriously hurt.

The package contained shrapnel consisting of nails and pieces of metal, sources said, but none of the 75 employees inside the facility were injured.

There are several law enforcement agencies at the scene, including agents from the ATF, FBI and Homeland Security.

This is a developing story. Please check back periodically for details.</s>Share this article with Google Plus

A sixth suspected package bomb was discovered at an Austin FedEx depot Tuesday morning, hours after a package exploded at a San Antonio facility.

Cops in the Texas city probed a parcel in a depot close to Austin’s airport, and sealed off nearby roads.

Specialist fire services were sent to the scene, as 500 FBI agents were put on the case in a bid to halt the bombing campaign that has already killed two people.

Workers at the depot said they were evacuated, hours after a female FedEx worker was injured when a package filled with nails and metal shrapnel exploded in San Antonio shortly after midnight.

She escaped with ringing in her ears.

The latest incident comes a day after a tripwire device sprayed two cyclists with nails

That blast– the fourth this month – left two young men seriously injured and the city on edge.

Police said the explosion was connected to three previous bombings in Austin and the bomber used a tripwire in the latest attack, showing a higher level of skill.

It came a week after an exploding package killed Austin teenager Draylen Mason, 17.

The same afternoon, another package exploded and killed an elderly Hispanic woman in Austin, ten days after Anthony Stephan House was killed by an exploding package in the same Texan city.

Police are not believed to have identified any suspects for the attacks, and prompted widespread panic after warning Austin locals not to open any unexpected packages.

It was initially feared the bomber could have a racist motive, as the first three bombs killed two African American men, and injured an elderly Hispanic lady.

However, the two men injured in Sunday’s tripwire attack were white, which cast doubts over whether the attacker is a far-right extremist.</s>A package exploded early this morning at a FedEx facility in Schertz, Texas, about 60 miles south of Austin, according to the FBI and local law enforcement. According to media reports, it was bound for Austin.

"Early this morning, Schertz Police responded to the Fedex facility in the 9900 block of Doerr Lane for a report of an explosion," Schertz police wrote on Facebook. "Further investigation revealed the explosion came from a package in the sorting area of the facility. One person was treated and released at the scene."

In a statement, FedEx confirmed one employee sustained injuries in the blast.

"We can confirm that a single package exploded while in a FedEx Ground sortation facility early this morning. One team member is being treated for minor injuries," FedEx said. "We are working closely with law enforcement in their investigation. We are not providing any additional specific information about this package at this time."

The explosion comes amid a string of four bombings that have struck Austin over the past three weeks. Two people have been killed, and four others wounded.

“We believe that the [latest] explosion is likely connected to our overall investigation into the bombings,” FBI Special Agent Michelle Lee told KUT.

The Austin Fire Department says it has received calls about a suspicious package at a FedEx facility on 4117 McKinney Falls Parkway, near the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport. The fire department's hazardous materials team is at the scene with the Austin Police Department and Austin-Travis County Emergency Medical Services.</s>Over the course of 17 days in March, four separate packages have mysteriously exploded in Austin, killing two people in the Texas capital and injuring four others. Then, just after midnight on Tuesday morning, March 20, a fifth package exploded. Despite the fact that the package exploded at a FedEx facility in the San Antonio area, police are reportedly investigating whether it is related to the series of events that is now becoming known as the Austin bombings.

The Washington Post reported that a law enforcement official said a possible link between the fifth package and the four that have already exploded in Austin "is definitely a concern of ours." It's not hard to see why. The package that exploded at the FedEx facility in Schertz, Texas was bound for an address in Austin, CBS Austin reports.

That means that all five of the detonated packages were either sent to, or headed for, Texas' capital city.

A statement from a FedEx spokesman on Tuesday said that no deaths were causes by the latest explosion. It reads,

Most of the bombings so far have been in packages in transit or at homes, but the fourth bombing marked a difference. On Sunday, March 18, two days before the explosion at the FedEx facility near San Antonio, an explosion in Austin injured two men walking down a residential street, The Washington Post reports.

The fourth explosion differed from the previous three in two significants ways. First, it appeared to be triggered by a tripwire.

"The belief that we are now dealing with someone who is using tripwires shows a higher level of sophistication, a higher level of skill," Austin Police Chief Brian Manley said on Monday, per NPR. "Do not even approach it, but instead call 911."

The second difference between the fourth bombing and those that came before it? The first three explosions occurred in predominantly black and Latino neighborhoods, according to The Post, causing concern that the attacks were targeting minorities.

After the fourth explosion, Manley said police weren't ruling anything out.

"As we said from the beginning, we were not willing to classify this as terrorism, as hate, because we just don't know enough," the police chief said Monday, per NPR. "And what we have seen now is a significant change from what appeared to be three very targeted attacks, to what was last night an attack that would have hit a random victim that happened to walk by. So we've definitely seen a change in the method that this suspect ... is using."

The first of the Austin bombings happened on Friday morning, March 2. That particular attack resulted in a 39-year-old named Anthony Stephan House being killed after he handled a package that was left on his front porch, according to The New York Times.

Ten days later, two more bombings occurred in Austin. The first of the two killed a 17-year-old named Draylen Mason, a high school senior who had been accepted to the University of Texas, where he reportedly planned to study music.

"He was a cool guy, and he was just so fun to be around,” a friend, Kylie Phillips, told The Austin American-Statesman. “He was always busy, because he always had gigs and he was always doing things for the orchestra here in Austin … I used to sing in a band with him, so it was devastating when I found out he died.”

Mason's mother was also left critically injured, per The New York Times. Hours later, a 75-year-old Hispanic woman was injured after she picked up a package outside of her home, according to The Times.

And now, after another explosive package was found on Tuesday, police are working to make sure that a sixth explosion isn't added to the list of Austin bombings.</s>A packaged destined for an address in Austin exploded inside a FedEx distribution facility outside of San Antonio, law enforcement sources tell CBS Austin.



The package detonated around 12:25 am at the facility in Schertz, TX. Sources said the package was moving from an elevated conveyor belt to a lower section when it exploded.

A woman working near the package was treated for a headache but was not seriously hurt.



The package contained shrapnel consisting of nails and pieces of metal, sources said, but none of the 75 employees inside the facility were injured.



There are several law enforcement agencies at the scene, including agents from the ATF, FBI and Homeland Security.

This is a developing story, stay with us on air and online for the latest.</s>Austin has had 3 package explosions this month, and a fourth blast that could involve a trip wire may be connected as well.Here is a timeline of when these terrifying events occurred:6:55 a.m.Anthony Stephan House found a package that was left overnight on his doorstep. The package detonated, causing serious injuries. He was hospitalized and later died.6:44 a.m.A package found outside an Austin home exploded when it was brought inside. A 17-year-old boy was killed and a 40-year-old woman was badly wounded but expected to live.11:50 a.m.A similar package exploded at a residence across town, injuring a 75-year-old woman.8:32 p.m.Austin police responded to a reported explosion on Dawn Song Drive. Two men in their 20s were taken to a hospital with serous injuries.9:31 p.m.Residents are advised to stay inside their homes while police comb the area."Do not touch any packages or anything that looks like a package. Do not even go near it," Austin Police Chief Brian Manley cautioned residents.</s>iStock/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — The changing nature of the explosives being used in and around Austin has investigators scrambling for a break in the case, but police continue to reiterate their call for residents to be exceedingly cautious.

Police have been warning residents about suspicious packages since the second and third package bombs detonated at residences in the Texas capital on March 12, but the nature of the warnings have changed as the types of explosives have evolved.

The first three blasts stemmed from package bombs that were left in front of private homes. The fourth explosive is believed to have been detonated by a trip wire in a grassy area next to a road.

And now investigators are working to determine if a blast at a FedEx distribution facility about 65 miles southwest of Austin is connected. According to police, who spoke with San Antonio ABC affiliate KSAT, a medium-sized box exploded at the facility in the early hours this morning.

The general warning that Austin police have been stressing to residents is that they should report any suspicious items they see, “whether it be a package, a bag, a backpack or anything that looks out of place,” they wrote in a statement this morning.

On March 17, one day before the fourth blast, the Austin police released a graphic with a picture of an example of a suspicious package.

It highlighted several signs that should spark suspicion, including excessive postage, misspelled words or a badly written address. A note that the package is “Personal!” or confidential or has no return address should be red flags, too.

Oily stains, strange scents, powder residue or protruding wires were also listed as indicators of a suspicious package.

In addressing the first three blasts, Austin police chief Brian Manley said they did not believe that the packages are being delivered by any formal mail services, including the U.S. Postal Service, FedEx, UPS or DHL.

“They’re an average-size delivery box. They’re not exceptionally large,” Manley said on March 12, the day of the second and third blasts.

The suspect or suspects did not ring the doorbell with the delivery of the first three packages, Manley said, so it is unclear how long the packages were on the victims’ porches before they saw and moved them.

“What we know is when the victims have seen these packages on the front porch, they have gone out and handled them in some way or another and have had the explosions occur,” Manley said.

“These devices can explode in many ways, either by being moved or being opened. So that’s why I want to reiterate the importance that if you see something that’s out of place, do not handle it, do not move it, do not touch it. Call us,” Manley said.

“If you had a package at your home and you were not expecting a delivery, if the package delivered to your doorstep looks suspicious in any way, call 911 and report it. We will respond,” Manley said.

Police received hundreds of calls about packages in the days after that warning.</s>An explosion at a South Austin Goodwill store on Tuesday evening injured a man in his thirties, according to Austin-Travis County Emergency Management Services. Austin police said the sixth blast in the Capital City this month was not a package bomb, but an incendiary device described as “an artillery simulator.”

“At this time there is no reason to believe this incident is related to previous package bombs,” police tweeted just after 8 p.m. Austin Assistant Police Chief Ely Reyes said the incident occurred just after seven Tuesday evening, when a Goodwill employee handled one of two of these simulators “that looks like some type of ordnance or some type of momento,” causing one to go off in his hand.

“We have no reason to believe that this was an attempt at a copycat,” Reyes said during a briefing Tuesday night.

But the massive emergency response, including the evacuation of a nearby grocery story and the “reverse” evacuation of a nearby high school (people were ordered into the building) demonstrated the growing angst that residents of the city are starting to face.

This was the area’s second explosion on Tuesday, part of a string of bombings that have killed two and injured four across Austin and in Schertz, northeast of San Antonio. Investigators said earlier Tuesday that the five previous bombs are connected.

Officials said the explosion happened on Brodie Lane near West Slaughter in far South Austin, about eight miles from Sunday’s blast in Southwest Austin.

The sixth explosion extends what has already been a tense day for residents and first responders in Austin. Early Monday morning, a bomb disguised as a package exploded at a FedEx facility in Schertz; there were no serious injuries. Investigators later found an undetonated bomb disguised as a package at a FedEx store near the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Southeast Austin, and confirmed that a package delivery store in Sunset Valley is believed to be the source of the bomb that exploded in Schertz. FedEx has cooperated with authorities and turned over to investigators information on the sender of the package, offering a glimmer of hope that the police and federal investigators who have struggled to find any clues leading to a suspect or motive may finally have something to work with.

Tuesday’s explosions came two days after a trip wire triggered a bomb that injured two men in Southwest Austin. On March 12, two separate packages exploded, one killing 17-year-old Draylen Mason and injuring his mother at their East Austin home, and the other injuring 75-year-old Esperanza Herrera in Southeast Austin. Anthony Stephan House was killed on March 2 when a package exploded at his home in Northeast Austin. Austin police chief Brian Manley has described the bombings as the work of a serial bomber.
A second package presumed to have been sent by the bomber is discovered in a FedEx facility near Austin-Bergstrom International Airport.