New Orleans suspect was 'lone wolf' ISIS sympathiser who originally 'planned to harm family and friends'
2 January 2025, 16:46 | Updated: 2 January 2025, 18:21
The suspect involved in the New Orleans terror attack was "working alone", the FBI has confirmed, as officials revealed Shamsud Din Jabbar "originally planned to harm family and friends".
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FBI deputy assistant, Christopher Rayer, told a press conference on Thursday that the attack was "premeditated" and "evil" act of terrorism, confirming the suspect was an ISIS sympathiser.
Police identified 42-year-old Shamsud Din Jabbar, a US citizen from Texas and a US army veteran, as the prime suspect in the case on Wednesday.
Fourteen people have now been confirmed dead and another 35 others injured following the attack.
The FBI confirmed that CCTV evidence of Jabbar revealed he had placed two improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in cooler boxes a couple of streets apart around "two hours" before his pick-up truck attack.
During the press conference, law enforcement confirmed there was "no definitive link" between the New Orleans attack and a Tesla Cybertruck explosion outside a Trump hotel in Las Vegas.
Read more: New Orleans attack ‘could be linked’ to Cybertruck explosion - as police probe military connection
Read more: New Orleans attack: Everything we know about suspect Shamsud Din Jabbar
Jabbar was seen to plough into crowds in the French Quarter shortly after 3.15am local time on New Year's Day.
He subsequently opened fire on passers by after crashing his vehicle. The suspect was declared dead shortly after following a shootout with police.
The FBI said it had received more than "400 tips from members of the public", with over 1,000 agents and officers now working on the case.
They added that the force had "unfairly" faced criticism in the wake of Wednesday's attack.
FBI officials have revealed the suspect "posted several videos to an online platform" in the hours before the attacks, in the early hours of New Year's Day.
Federal investigators revealed Jabbar "originally planned to harm family and friends" but thought headlines would not properly show what he described as the "war between believers and the disbelievers".
He also left a "last will and testament," the FBI confirmed.
"Three phones linked to Jabbar have been recovered," authorities confirmed, as well as "two laptops" at a Mandeville address, in Louisiana, which was raided by police on Wednesday.
Two functional IEDs were found in water coolers located two blocks from each other, law enforcement confirmed as they appealed for witnesses to come forward.
CCTV footage shows Jabbar placing the devices at the two locations, authorities confirmed in the press conference on Thursday.
