Blowing himself up at 2:00 AM Central Time in his SUV on the shoulder of Route 35 20 miles north of Austin Texas, 23-year-old Mark Anthony Conditt ended his bombing spree that lasted three weeks, killing two, injuring five, before taking his own life as an Austin SWAT Team approached his vehicle. Conditt terrorized the Austin area, dumbfounding local, state and federal law enforcement before detectives traced the exotic Chinese batteries used in his package-bombs, also examining video footage at a local FedEx office where her dropped off two packages Sunday night, one of which detonated while on a conveyor belt. Authorities tracked Conditt to a hotel in Round Rock in the Austin City Limit. “These weren’t your storage-bought Duracells,” said an unnamed Law Enforcement official, tracking him down with the help of the FedEx video picking up Conditt’s license plate in the parking lot.
Austin Police Chief Brian Manley refused to speculate about a motive, nor did he give details about the kind of explosives packed inside the pipe-bomb apparatus stuffed with various kinds of shrapnel. Judging by the blast-yields that killed 39-year-old Anthony Stephan House March 2 and 17-year-old Dreylan Mason March 12, critically injuring his mother the same day, Conditt used ordinary gunpowder most likely from unused legal fireworks. Unlike military-grade C-4 or, more recent favorites of Mideast terrorists, TATP [Triacetone Triperoxide] or TCAP [tricyclic Acetone Peroxide], Conditt’s crude devices resembled the explosive components of the Tsarnaev Brothers who detonated two pressure cooker bombs near the finish line of the April 15, 2013 Boston Marathon. Austin authorities tracked Conditt’s bomb-making to Home Depot and Intenet purchases using the fake name “Kelly Killmore.”
FBI, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco Firearms and Explosives and local authorities confiscated Conditt’s bomb-making materiel at his jointly owned home with his father, Pat. Conditt lived with two roommates in Pflugerville, Texas, 20-miles north of Austin where he was remodeling the home jointly owned with his father. “He did not have a criminal record as best we can tell,” said Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, confirming that Conditt was unemployed. While Abbott said his roommates were cooperating, it’s hard to believe they didn’t know anything about the copious bomb-making components found at his Pflugerville home. Conditt apparently attended Austin Community College from 2010-2012, roughly at age 15 or16. Looking for answers, Austin police interviewed former middle school friend Jeff Reeb, who lived near Conditt for 17-years. He’s insisted the Conditts were “normal” people.
Putting Conditt in community college at age 15 suggests that he was home-schooled up to that point, putting him in Austin Community College to complete his education. Mark was “a very normal kid,” said Reeb, calling Conditt’s family “really nice.” Like so many mass murderers or serial killers, family or friends often miss the cues. ”We are devastated and broken at the news that our family member could be involved in such and awful way,” said Mark’s grandmother, Mary Conditt. “As we deal with this terrible, terrible knowledge and try to support each other at this time,” Mary requested privacy. But with Conditt dead at his own doing, the public—and law enforcement—has a right to know every conceivable detail in the post-mortem psychological autopsy. No one who commits egregious acts of violence or mass murder is a “normal” 23-year-old kid with a “normal background.”
Family secrets don’t seem obvious to outsiders or even family members not living inside the family home. “We had no idea of the darkness Mark must have been in. Our family is a normal family, in every way. We love, we pray and wee try to inspire and serve others. Right now our prayers are for the families who lost loved ones, for those impacted in any way, and for the soul of our Mark,” said Mary, in a carefully worded public statement. Instead of thinking the family deserves privacy, the public deserves answers, not something wrapped up in a tidy bow by the grandmother. Normal families don’t produce mass or serial killers or bombers like Mark. When the grandmother talks of Mark’s “dark place,” she’s referring, but not admitting to, some kind of undiagnosed mental illness or drug or alcohol use. Shocked family members or close friends are usually the last to know what happened.
Law enforcement expressed relief that the long three weeks came to an end, one way or another. “This is the culmination of three very long weeks for our community said, Mayor Manley. “We still need to remain vigilant to ensure no other packages or devices have been left in the community,” warning the public to keep their eyes peeled. While the Conditt family wants privacy, the public deserves a full accounting of what happened during Conditt’s three-week terror binge. Killing or maiming folks with package bombs is every bit the lethal booby traps planned by Islamic terrorists looking to advance political agendas. While there’s a lot yet to learn about Condit, the family shouldn’t stonewall the press or law enforcement profilers looking for answers to unspeakable acts. Conditt’s family has plenty of time to grieve but the public deserves answers.
