Eric Gay / AP
An Austin neighborhood was on lockdown after a fourth explosive device — the latest in a string of package bombs in the city — detonated Sunday morning, injuring two men and leaving officials deeply concerned about the "sophistication" of the latest bomb.
Sunday's bomb injured two men in their 20s who were riding their bicycles through a residential area. Unlike the three previous package bombs, which were placed outside the front doors of residents' homes, the fourth package was left by the side of the road.
While the other three detonated when the victims opened or moved them, Sunday's package bomb was possible triggered by a tripwire, police said.
"If this explosion was the result of the bomb utilizing tripwire technology, that is showing a different level of skill above what we were already concerned that the suspect or suspects may posses," Austin Police Chief Brian Manley told Good Morning America on Monday.
Sunday's explosion occurred hours after Manley made a televised appeal to whoever was responsible for the bombs, saying, "We assure you that we are listening."
Authorities also doubled their their reward for information leading to an arrest in the case, from $50,000 to $100,000. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has also offered $15,000 for any tips leading to an arrest.
Despite hundreds of calls and tips that have come in since the first three package explosions occurred within 10 days of each other, police said they are yet to identify a suspect or suspects as well as an ideology or motive for the serial bombings that have rattled Austin.
"At this point, we don't have specifics leading us to one suspect," Manley told GMA.
Authorities have not ruled out the possibility of hate crimes as the first two bombs killed two black people — a 39-year-old man and a 17-year-old boy — whose relatives knew each other and were prominent members of the city's black community. A 75-year-old Latino woman suffered life-threatening injuries in the third bomb.
The first three package bombs went off in neighborhoods further east. Sunday's bomb went off in the southwestern neighborhood of Travis Country and the two men injured were white, police said. But authorities said they are working under the assumption that the four explosions are related to each other.
"We’ve gad a lot of good leads and tips come in and we run each one of those to ground," Manley said. "At this point, we have people that we have looked at, but there's no leading suspect at this time."
Austin Mayor Steve Adler told GMA there was "not enough data" to be able to understand what the suspect(s) motives were.
"We're one of the safest cities in the country now dealing with some really horrific events," Adler said, urging residents not to go near anything that appeared suspicious and to alert authorities right away.
"This is the highest priority," Adler said, emphasizing the scale of local and federal law enforcement resources working on the case.
LINK: A Fourth Explosion In Austin May Have Been Triggered By A Trip Wire, Police Say
LINK: Three Package Explosions In 10 Days Killed Two People In Austin, Prompting Fear And Warnings
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