Federal authorities are investigating whether there may be a link between Wednesday’s fatal truck assault in New Orleans and a deadly blast outside Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas just hours later, President Joe Biden told the nation.
The Las Vegas incident killed one, injured seven, forced an evacuation of the hotel and sent terrified guests pouring from the building Wednesday afternoon. It happened after a Tesla Cybertruck caught fire and exploded.
The explosion happened just hours after 15 people were killed and injured about 30 others in an attack involving a truck in New Orleans in the early morning hours of New Year’s Day, prompting increased scrutiny from law enforcement in Las Vegas.
“We’re tracking the explosion of a cyber truck outside the Trump Hotel in Las Vegas,” Biden said in public remarks. “Law enforcement and the intelligence community are investigating this as well, including whether there’s any possible connection with attack in New Orleans.”
The FBI said the attack at 3:15 a.m. in New Orleans’ French Quarter is being investigated as an act of terrorism.
The driver in the attack has been identified by the FBI as Shamsud Din Jabbar, a 42-year-old U.S. citizen and Army veteran who lived in Texas. Jabbar appeared to be carrying an ISIS flag and was dressed in military gear, the FBI said.