Authorities have increased the reward to $100,000 for information leading to an arrest in a string of package bombings in Austin.
That's in addition to the $15,000 reward offered by Gov. Greg Abbott's office, interim Austin Police Chief Brian Manley said at a news conference today.
Austin has been on high alert since three package bombs exploded on residents' doorsteps, killing two people and wounding two others. Manley said officials have received 435 leads and "each and every one of these leads will be followed up on."
He again implored residents to report any suspicious packages to 911. None of the three bombs, which were not delivered through normal mail delivery, exploded until it was handled.
"The materials used to make these devices are very volatile, they are extremely dangerous, and they are difficult to keep stabilized," he said.
The APD has received 735 suspicious package calls since Monday, he said.
He also asked the person or persons behind the attacks to get in touch with police via 911 or social media before anyone else is hurt.
"There's a message behind what's happening in our community," he said, "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."
Manley said authorities do not believe a man arrested for allegedly making a bomb threat against a SXSW venueSaturday was involved in the package bombings. Police say the suspect, 26-year-old Trevor Wilson Ingram, emailed a bomb threat aimed at the Fair Market venue on East Fifth Street. The concert promoter canceled the event, which featured the band The Roots, due to "an overabundance of caution," Manley said.
Ingram has been charged with making a terroristic threat.
Claire McInerny contributed to this report.
Copyright 2020 KUT 90.5. To see more, visit . 9(MDAwMTM1NDgzMDEyMzg2MDcwMzJjODJiYQ004))
