New Tech and New Insight to Catch Bomber

APD is getting additional resources from the state to help solve the bombings.

As that arrives we are also getting new insight into who may be responsible. Investigators, Monday repeated their plea for the bomber to contact them. 

"Communicate with us so we can put this to an end,” said Interim APD Chief Brian Manley.

The explosion Sunday happened a few hours after the first request was made. The blast may have been a response, according to terrorism analyst Fred Burton with Stratfor.

"To me it’s almost like the bomber is signaling or messaging that he is one step ahead,” said Burton.

The bomber profile, by Burton is a white male. He may have a job that makes him familiar with all 4 of the areas targeted this month. He may also have a military background.

"The first 3 devices I think were a mercury switch, or a trembler, designed to detonate when you turn that package, this is someone, Rudy, this is someone that is very comfortable with that,” said Burton.

Burton is not 100% sure the person responsible for Sunday’s incident in SW Austin is the same one who also left package bombs at homes in east Austin.

"This could be a copycat."

With several hundred federal agents now in Austin, Burton told FOX7 the pressure to solve the four cases will intensify with each day the person or persons responsibly remain at large.

"There is no bigger domestic bombing investigation underway in the Continental United States than this right now. Our entire counter terrorism system put together post 9-11 is just to find people like this,” said Burton.

The state of Texas is also pumping in resources to Austin. FOX7 met with Gov. Greg Abbott to talk about $260,000 in grant money he is providing to the city. The grant will help Austin purchase portable bomb detecting x ray machines. 

"And so we need to be able to have all the equipment on the ground so we can quickly respond to all of these multitude of request that are coming in about whether or not a package somebody has contains an explosive device,” said Governor Abbott.

The grant will help purchase 4 scanners for Austin. 3 more are being provided to DPSs. The governor has also ordered a contingent of 100 state troopers, along with specially trained K9 teams, to the capitol city.  A deployment like this by DPS hasn't happened since the Hurricane Harvey response and when a thousand troopers were sent to the Texas border by former governor Rick Perry.

"As far as a law enforcement measure is concerned, this is the largest deployment by the Texas department of public safety, both of the magnitude of the danger people are facing but also the uncertainty about where the cause is coming from. It’s essential that we get to the bottom of this as quickly as possible, before anybody else is harmed,” said Abbott.

It was also noted how all the blast locations move in a counter-clockwise direction. It reminds Fred Burton of a pattern created by mass bomber Lucas Helder. Back in 2002 Helder set off pipe bombs across the Midwest and north Texas in an attempt to create a giant smiley face.