A Fourth Bomb Hit Austin on Sunday Night, and It’s Different From the Rest in Two Important Ways

Last week, we wrote about three separate bombings in Austin, TX that apparently targeted African-American community leaders and their families, killing two and seriously injuring a third. The operating theory at the time was still a little vague, but settled on race as the operative motivation. Then, early Sunday, police issued a message to the bomber, asking him to reach out to explain himself, and that they were ready to talk. At that moment, it didn’t sound like they had a solid clue as to why any of this was happening. Per the Times:

“There’s the message behind what’s happening in our community, and we’re not going to understand that until the suspect or suspects reaches out to us to talk to us about what that message was,” Chief Manley said. “We still do not know what ideology may be behind this and what the motive was behind this.”

Not long after that press conference, the bomber apparently struck again. This time the bomb was delivered to a neighborhood in southwest Austin, and the explosion injured two men, who were taken to the hospital. Multiple outlets are reporting that the victims were bicyclists, and they set off a trip wire on their bikes that caused the explosion. This method differs greatly from the bomber’s previous attacks—including the fact that the victims were white—and has puzzled authorities. From NBC News:

“With this tripwire, this changes things,” said Christopher Combs, special agent in charge of the FBI’s San Antonio division. “It’s more sophisticated, it’s not targeted to individuals … a child could be walking down a sidewalk and hit something.”

Austin police chief Brian Manley has labeled the criminal a “serial bomber,” and fear has spread through Austin in the aftermath of the attacks. Times:

Since March 12, the day when two bombings occurred, anxious residents have reported hundreds of suspicious packages to the authorities; Austin police officers have responded to 735 such calls. Officials have continued to urge residents to call 911 if they receive a package that they were not expecting and that did not appear to have been delivered by the Postal Service or a legitimate commercial service like U.P.S. or FedEx.

The FBI has now sent over 350 agents to Austin, and they’re joined by local authorities and the ATF.