Just two days after a fourth package bomb exploded in Austin, with police believing that the so-called “serial bomber” is becoming more sophisticated with his attacks, an explosion occurred at a FedEx facility in Schertz, Texas — a city located just east of San Antonio and approximately 60 miles from Austin. The explosion happened around 12:30 a.m. on Tuesday in the sorting area of the facility. One person was treated by medical personnel at the scene for a possible concussion and subsequently released, but no major injuries were reported.
Although the four package bombs in Austin were left in unmarked boxes, authorities have reason to believe that the explosion is connected based on preliminary information gathered at the scene.
A law enforcement source said that police were investigating whether the explosion was related to the other four in Austin, which have killed two people and injured others. That “is definitely a concern of ours,” said the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the latest incident. The FBI and ATF were at the scene.
Law enforcement had believed the first three bombings to possibly be racially motivated since they were targeted in less affluent part of the city inhabited by minorities, however Sunday night’s explosion was left by the side of the road and detonated by tripwire, leaving a dent in that theory.
Fred Milanowski, special agent in charge of the Houston division of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, is advising residents to stay away from anything that seems suspicious and contact law enforcement. “Because if they move that package or if they step on that tripwire, it’s likely to detonate,” he warned.
The FBI and Texas Crime Stoppers are still offering a $115,000 reward for any information leading to the arrest of the serial bomber.
FBI in Schertz investigating an explosion that happened at a @FedEx ground facility around midnight. One woman reportedly injured #kens5eyewitness pic.twitter.com/8FMrwz7YU1
— Charlie Cooper (@CharlieCooperTV) March 20, 2018
According to schertz pd
A medium sized package exploded on a conveyer track with metal shrapnel and nails at the fedex ground processing plant in schertz. One person injured from the concussion of of the detonation of the package. #kens5eyewitness pic.twitter.com/uGcl1NddsF— Gene De La Cruz (@gene78577) March 20, 2018
UPDATE #1 – 9:50am EST: The AP tweets that police have also sent a hazardous materials team to an Austin FedEx center due to a suspicious package.
https://twitter.com/APCentralRegion/status/976092156787032069
(Via KENS 5, Washington Post, CNN)