Federal authorities have found “no definitive link” between the New Orleans terrorist attack and the Tesla Cybertruck explosion in Las Vegas, both of which happened on New Year’s Day.
Authorities also said Thursday that they are no longer investigating “people of interest” related to the attack in New Orleans, in which a Texas-born U.S. citizen drove a truck adorned with an ISIS flag through a crowd of people. Deputy assistant of the FBI’s counterterrorism division Christopher Raia confirmed on Thursday that the agency now believes Shamsud-Din Jabbar acted alone.
Jabbar, 42, drove a rented Ford pickup truck through hordes of people on Wednesday in the French Quarter of New Orleans, killing at least 14, and injuring more than 30. Jabbar then fired at two officers before authorities shot and killed him. Two possible improvised explosive devices (IEDs) were recovered nearby. Weapons, along with one additional IED, were found in Jabbar’s rented vehicle.
The suspect attempted to “run over as many people as he possibly could,” New Orleans police superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick said.
Raia said Thursday that Jabbar was “100 percent inspired by ISIS” and said the bureau will prioritize efforts to understand the “path to radicalization” that led to the attack.
Jabbar, who served in the Army for 13 years, carried an ISIS flag on the back of his pickup truck.
Also on Wednesday, active-duty Special Forces soldier Matthew Livelsberger exploded a rented Tesla Cybertruck outside of the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas.
Although the two cases share similarities — both men rented their vehicles from the car-sharing app Turo and spent time at the same military base — authorities have not found evidence to prove that the attacks are related. Reports that Jabbar and Livelsberger served on the same military base at the same time are unconfirmed.
Authorities identified Livelsberger, 37, as the man behind the Tesla Cybertruck explosion. A Colorado resident and a member of the U.S. Army’s Green Berets, Livelsberger was on active duty in Germany overseeing drone operations. Responsible for “operations, maintenance and integration” of drones, Livelsberger was on leave from Germany in Colorado.
The silver Cybertruck, rented in Colorado through Turo, exploded at around 8:40 a.m. on Wednesday. Authorities found firework mortars, gasoline canisters, and camp fuel canisters inside the vehicle. Livelsberger was killed in the blast and at least seven other bystanders were wounded.
Police said Thursday that Livelsberger suffered a gunshot to the head before the Cybertruck exploded. Clark County sheriff Kevin McMahill told reporters that a handgun was found at the man’s feet and the shot was believed to be self-inflicted.
Multiple U.S. officials confirmed to the Associated Press that Livelsberger spent time at Fort Bragg in North Carolina. He joined the elite Green Berets in 2006 and was serving with the 10th Special Forces Group in Germany at the time of his death.
“He is highly trained in communications and electronic measures for bomb detections, and intelligence operations,” CNN’s John Miller, a former deputy commissioner of intelligence and counterterrorism at the New York Police Department, reported. “He would be one of the most sophisticated in terms of training people in the Green Berets.”
First activated at Fort Bragg, the 10th Special Forces Group operates mostly in Central and Eastern Europe and is currently conducting “operations and training missions in Europe, Africa, Iraq and Afghanistan,” the group says on its website. The 10th Special Forces Group has a long history of combatting terrorism and conducting counterterrorism missions.
“Master Sgt. Matthew Alan Livelsberger enlisted as an 18X and served in the active duty Army from January 2006 to March 2011. Livelsberger then joined the National Guard from March 2011 to July 2012, followed by the Army Reserve from July 2012 to December 2012. He entered the active duty Army in December 2012 and was a U.S. Army Special Operations Soldier,” an Army spokesman told Fox. “Additionally, U.S. Army Special Operations Command can confirm Livelsberger was assigned to the command and on approved leave at the time of his death. USASOC is in full cooperation with federal and state law enforcement agencies, but as a matter of policy, will not comment on ongoing investigations.”
Meanwhile, back in New Orleans, the city began to reopen Thursday after its hub was blocked off as an active crime scene. Officials are implementing further safety measures for Thursday’s Sugar Bowl, the college football game between Georgia and Notre Dame which was postponed for 24 hours following the attack.
“We are going to have absolutely hundreds of officers and staff lining our streets,” New Orleans police superintendent Kirkpatrick said.
Louisiana governor Jeff Landry said he will be in attendance at Thursday’s game. Police have encouraged spectators to attend the event, which will have enhanced security measures.
While authorities have not yet publicly identified victims of the New Orleans attack, some family members have identified several of those killed. Tiger Bech, 27, a former Princeton University football player and Louisiana native, was killed while walking back to his hotel with his best friend. Reggie Hunter, 37, a father of two, was celebrating New Year’s on Bourbon Street with his cousin when he was struck by Jabbar. Kareem Badawi, a student at the University of Alabama, was also killed in the attack.
Two Mexican citizens and two Israeli citizens were injured in the attack, according to the country’s respective foreign affairs offices.
Asked by reporters about why law enforcement had changed its theory that others were involved in the New Orleans attack, the FBI said it is working to be as transparent with the public as possible.
“As we’re being transparent, there is some information we have to go back and correct,” Raia said. “We’ve had 24 hours now to go through media, to go through phones, to interview people, to analyze videos, and other databases,” he said, adding that authorities are “confident at this point that there’s no accomplices.”