The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in the United States has released further information about the deadly New Year’s Eve car crash in New Orleans, offering a brief timeline of how the suspect carried out his attack.
ua press conference on Thursday, Christopher Raia, deputy assistant director of the FBI’s counterterrorism division, also clarified that only one suspect is currently involved in the attack: a 42-year-old Texas resident Shamsud-Dim Jabbar.
“At this time we do not assess that anyone other than Shamsud-Dim Jabbar is involved in this attack,” Raia said.
Although he stressed that the investigation is still in its early stages, he added: “At this point, we are confident that there are no accomplices.”
The press briefing came just over a day after Jabbar allegedly drove a rented Ford F-150 pickup truck into holiday crowds celebrating on Bourbon Street, New Orleans’ center of tourism and nightlife.
Fourteen people were killed when the truck went around a traffic barricade on Canal Street and traveled nearly two and a half blocks along the busy pedestrian street.
The truck crashed near the intersection with Conti Street, and Jabbar reportedly exchanged fire with officers as he tried to flee.
He was eventually killed in the exchange. At least 35 people were injured, including two policemen.
Media reports said the dead included a father of two from Baton Rouge, a single mother from Metairie, Louisiana, and a football player who attended Princeton University.
Revised timeline
Raia explained that authorities now have a better idea of how Jabbar ended up on Bourbon Street in the early hours of New Year’s Day, when the attack took place.
“Investigators believe Jabbar picked up the rented F-150 in Houston, Texas on December 30,” Raia said. He then drove from Houston to New Orleans on the evening of the 31st.
In the final hours before the attack, Jabbar posted a series of five videos on his Facebook account, “declaring his support” for the armed group ISIL (ISIS), according to Raija.
The first video was posted at 1:29 am local time (07:29 GMT). The latest came at 3:02 am (09:02 GMT). Around 3:15 (09:15 GMT), the deadly attack was underway.
That video showed Raiji and his colleagues that Jabbar “was 100 percent inspired by ISIS.”
“In the first video, Jabbar explains that he originally planned to harm his family and friends, but was worried that the news headlines wouldn’t focus on, quote, a war between believers and unbelievers,” Raia said.
“In addition, he stated that he joined ISIS before this summer. He also made a will and testament.”
Investigation underway
Authorities, however, stressed that their investigation into the attack is ongoing.
Evidence technicians continue to search the rental truck for evidence. Three phones linked to Jabbar are also being searched, as well as two laptops.
Raia added that FBI agents have received more than 400 tips from the public since the attack. He requested additional information, especially about the suspect.
“Whether you know Jabbar personally, worked with him, served in the military or saw him in New Orleans or Texas, we need to talk to you,” Raia said.
Authorities discovered Jabbar is a US-born citizen and military veteran who served in Afghanistan from 2009 to 2010.
After leaving the military in 2020, he worked at the consulting firm Deloitte and appears to have dabbled in real estate.
The ISIL flag was finally pulled from the back of Jabbar’s rental truck on Wednesday.
Bomb technicians also found two improvised explosive devices, or IEDs, planted in coolers near where the car crashed: one at the intersection of Bourbon and Orleans streets and the other two blocks away.
“Let me be very clear on this point: this was an act of terrorism. It was a premeditated and evil act,” said Raia.
Raia added that reports of other explosives found at the scene either turned out to be misinformation or “devices that are not really functional.”
No accomplices
At Thursday’s briefing, Raia also retracted an earlier statement by the FBI that said Jabbar did not act alone.
A day earlier, Alethea Duncan, assistant special agent in charge of the FBI’s New Orleans office, told reporters, “We don’t believe Jabbar was solely responsible.”
But Raia tried to allay concerns that Jabbar may have accomplices yet to be arrested.
“We had 24 hours to go through media, phones, interview people, analyze those videos, analyze other databases,” Raia said.
“Hundreds and hundreds of traces were made in just 24 hours. At this point, we are confident that there are no accomplices.”
He explained that much of the concern stemmed from witnesses who observed bystanders approaching refrigerators where IEDs were later discovered.
“There were a lot of early reports that there were extra people setting up coolers,” he said.
“It turned out to be just visitors on the street looking inside the fridge. We didn’t know that at first.”
Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry spoke out and urged the public to be patient with the investigative process.
“No one puts together a puzzle of a thousand pieces and puts it together in five seconds,” he told reporters.
Bourbon Street ‘Restored’
State and local officials at a news conference Thursday also sought to restore public confidence after the deadly attack, which raised questions about security precautions in New Orleans, a popular tourist destination.
New Orleans was in the process of replacing its bollards — poles used to block traffic at pedestrian hot spots — but city officials stressed that other barriers had been installed where the bollards had been removed.
Mayor LaToya Cantrell also revealed that law enforcement officers had cleared the Bourbon Street crime scene and returned the area to city officials.
That allowed street cleaners to work nearly six hours overnight to prepare the pedestrian street for visitors, including those attending Thursday’s Sugar Bowl, the college football championship game.
The game was postponed for a day after the car attack while the stadium, Caesars Superdome, underwent an extensive security check.
“Safety remains our top priority,” Cantrell said, noting that law enforcement is deployed throughout the city.
“Therefore, there is confidence that we will reopen Bourbon Street to the public before today’s game.”
Governor Landry added that there is an “unprecedented amount of law enforcement resources” in the city. He previously stated that he plans to attend the Sugar Bowl game.
Tourism is a pillar of the New Orleans economy and is valued 43 million visitors pass through Louisiana every year.
In 2023 alone, tourists spent a total of $18.1 billion and generated $1.9 billion in state and local taxes.
This year, the city is set to host not only its traditional Mardi Gras parades — a highlight of the tourist calendar — but also the Super Bowl, the nation’s most watched sporting event.
Cantrell hinted at those upcoming events in her remarks Thursday.
“I want to reassure the public that the city of New Orleans is not just ready for today’s game,” she said. “We are ready to continue hosting large-scale events in our city because we are made to host them.”
