The New Orleans terrorist attacker raised “red flags” when he planted two IEDs in the French Quarter hours before carrying out attack which left 14 civilians dead, according to behavioral analyst Susan Constantine.
Constantine described Shamsud-Din Jabbar as an “anomaly” in the French Quarter on New Year’s Eve, as shown in videos released by the FBI last week. In the videos, Jabbar can be seen wearing a long, formal-looking coat and glasses, carrying a cooler on wheels and frequently looking at his phone.
“These are all red flags,” Constantine told Fox News Digital. “Anyone looking for danger would pick up on these anomalies, sending messages very quickly, apparently in communication with someone else. And then showing someone.”
Jabbar appears to be waving around the 2:30-minute mark in surveillance video of him carrying IED coolers in the French Quarter, and while he may have been waving at an accomplice, Constantine said the waving may also have been an attempt to appear less “conspicuous.” .
BOURBON STREET TERROR VICTIMS SUING NEW ORLEANS AS LOUISIANA AG INVESTIGATES SECURITY BREAKS
Shamsud-Din Jabbar seen waving on surveillance footage from the French Quarter on New Year’s Eve. (FBI)
“It was so obvious it was literally disgusting,” the behavioral analyst said of Jabbar’s wave. “You have to think about how they’re thinking: How would they try to portray themselves as normal? They’re performers and actors… I think we need to have more consumer education, because officers and security guards can’t have eyes everywhere.”
The FBI said after the attack that Jabbar acted alone, but a New Orleans Field Office Spokesman told Fox News Digital that “[a]All matters are under investigation at this time,” when asked if Jabbar might have been waving at an accomplice.
WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT THE VICTIMS OF THE TERRORIST ATTACK IN NEW ORLEANS
The FBI has released surveillance photos showing Shamsud-Din Jabbar an hour before he drove the truck down Bourbon Street in New Orleans, early on January 1, 2025. (FBI via AP)
Constantine noticed other oddities in Jabbar’s behavior that appear in the FBI videos: he is alone in a crowd of friends partying on Bourbon Street on New Year’s Eve, he wears clothes that look more formal than other people in the area, he carries a rolling cooler and then leaves him, often texts on her phone and walks a lot, which she described as “happy feet” because of the adrenaline rush of knowing what she was about to do.
BARRICADE SURVEILLANCE IN NEW ORLEANS ‘TERRORIST TARGET AREA’ DURING HIGH SEASON CAUSES CONCERN
Refrigerator with IED planted near Bourbon and Orleans Streets. (FBI)
“That’s what we see time and time again,” the analyst said. “There are behavioral indicators of an anomaly.”
Constantine, however, mentioned that there are “a bunch of nuts” on Bourbon Street that patrons may not think twice about, especially because they’re drinking, and may be focused on other sensory experiences, especially the loud jazz music and colorful art that France is known for. fourth.
Jabbar seen carrying a cooler on wheels in French Quarter surveillance video on New Year’s Eve. (FBI)
“It’s hard to pick them out,” she said of the shady people on Bourbon Street. “That’s exactly why he chose where he is, because there’s a lot of people out there—a bunch of lunatics walking around, so why should they pay attention to him?”
NEW ORLEANS ATTACK COULD HAVE ENCOURAGED ISIS TO RADICALIZE OTHER AMERICANS, EXPERTS SAY
Investigators work at the scene after a person crashed their vehicle into a crowd earlier at Canal and Bourbon streets in New Orleans, Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
The FBI continues to investigate the attack and said Jabbar was motivated by ISIS extremism.
Federal authorities announced last week that Jabbar had previously visited New Orleans on two occasions — once on Oct. 31, 2024, and once on Nov. 10, 2024. The gunman also visited Cairo, Egypt, and Toronto, Canada, before the attack, the FBI said.
Although Jabbar apparently acted alone, authorities are still investigating whether he had accomplices.
