President Biden confirms probe into ‘possible connection’ between New Orleans attack, Las Vegas Cybertruck explosion

WASHINGTON: United States President Joe Biden said on Wednesday (local time) that law enforcement is investigating any possible connection between the New Orleans ‘terror’ attack and the Tesla Cybertruck explosion outside the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas.

The vehicles used in both incidents were rented from a car rental site, ‘Turo’, prompting authorities to look for links between the two events. “We’re tracking the explosion of a Cybertruck outside the Trump Hotel in Las Vegas. Law enforcement and the intelligence community are investigating this as well, including whether there’s any possible connection with the attack in New Orleans”, Joe Biden said.

Biden assured that every resource is being utilized to ensure there is no threat to the American people. “I directed my team to make sure every resource is made available to federal, state and local law enforcement to complete the investigation in New Orleans quickly and to make sure there is no remaining threat to the American people”.

A Tesla Cybertruck exploded outside the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas, killing one person and injuring seven, hours after the New Orleans attack, in which a car rammed into a crowd during New Year’s celebrations, killing at least 15 people.

Speaking about the New Orleans attack, Biden said that the FBI is leading the investigation. He further informed that the attacker, Shamsud Din Jabbar, was an American citizen who had served in the US Army. Biden also revealed that the attacker posted videos on social media indicating he was inspired by ISIS hours before the attack.

“The FBI is leading the investigation to determine what happened, why it happened and whether there was any continuing threat to public safety. Here’s what we know so far. The FBI has reported to me, the killer was an American citizen, born in Texas. He served in the United States Army on active duty for many years. He also served in the Army Reserve until a few years ago.” Biden said.

“The FBI also reported to me that mere hours before the attack, he posted videos on social media indicating that he was inspired by ISIS, expressing a desire to kill. The ISIS flag was found in his vehicle which he rented to conduct this attack. Possible explosives were found in the vehicle as well, and more explosives were found near,” he added.

The FBI earlier described the attack as “an act of terrorism” and revealed that the driver, Shamsud Din Jabbar, had an ISIS flag and multiple suspected explosive devices in his vehicle. The FBI also confirmed that the vehicle was rented from a car rental platform called Turo.

Earlier, Elon Musk also alleged a connection between the Las Vegas and New Orleans attacks. “Appears likely to be an act of terrorism. Both this Cybertruck and the F-150 suicide bomb in New Orleans were rented from Turo. Perhaps they are linked in some way”, Musk wrote on X.

The Tesla CEO clarified on X that the explosion was caused by fireworks or a bomb carried in the bed of the rented Cybertruck, not by the vehicle itself. He also noted that the truck had been rented from Turo, alleging at a connection with the New Orleans attack, where, according to CNN, a suspect rammed into a crowd during New Year’s celebrations with a Ford F-150 Lightning electric truck rented from the same site. (ANI)