A man in his 20s suspected of a series of deadly bombings around Austin, Texas, has died in an explosion on the side of a road as police closed in on him, officials said.
Local media identified him as Mark Anthony Conditt, of Pflugerville, Texas. Public records showed Conditt's age as 23.
Police tracked the suspect to a hotel about 32km north of Austin, the state capital.
They were following his vehicle when he pulled to the side of the road and detonated a device, killing himself.
"The suspect is deceased and has significant injuries from a blast that occurred from detonating a bomb inside his vehicle," Austin Police Chief Brian Manley told reporters.
Investigators had tracked him for a couple of days before closing in at an unidentified hotel in Round Rock, Texas, not far from his home in Pflugerville, Governor Greg Abbott told Fox News.
"We've known for a couple of days who the suspect likely was," Mr Abbott said.
ATF agents removed what they described as 'completed' devices from the man's home in the Pflugerville area where they also found components similar to those used in the other devices that exploded in recent days.
The governor added that the suspect is believed to have lived with two roommates, who are not currently considered suspects.
The suspect was not a military veteran, Mr Abbott said.
Texas law enforcement officials blocked off the street where the suspect lived, not far from where the first bomb went off on 2 March, killing one person.
One man who lived near the bombing suspect said that Conditt and his friends would hang out late at night.
"They would be out in back playing music and partying pretty late," he said.
While jogging last night, he noticed a heavy police presence in the area, with drones flying overhead.
Mr Manley said the suspect was believed to be responsible for six bombs around Austin, all but one of which detonated. He said the motivation for the bombings or whether the suspect had help was not yet known.
Mr Manley warned residents to be cautious since it was not clear whether any more bombs had been left around the city.
The bombings killed two people and injured at least five others, unnerving residents of Austin, a city of some one million people.
The first bombings occurred as the city was hosting the annual South By Southwest (SXSW) music, film and technology festival.
While officers waited for reinforcements before they arrested him, the suspect left the hotel and police followed.
The suspect pulled off the city's main highway and two Austin police officers approached his vehicle when he set off the device.
One officer fired at the vehicle and the other sustained a minor injury when the bomb went off, Mr Manley said.
US President Donald Trump congratulated authorities on Twitter: "Great job by law enforcement and all concerned!"
AUSTIN BOMBING SUSPECT IS DEAD. Great job by law enforcement and all concerned!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 21, 2018
Mr Manley said investigators have no clear idea of what prompted the suspect to carry out the bombing, saying: "We do not understand what motivated him to do what he did."
