The suspect behind the Cybertruck that exploded at the Trump Hotel has been identified as an active-duty US Army soldier
The driver of the Tesla Cybertruck that exploded outside Trump International Hotel Las Vegas on New Year’s Day was identified as active-duty US Army soldier Matthew Livelsberger, the Associated Press reported, citing law enforcement officials. The officials spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the ongoing investigation.
Livelsberger, 37, has several addresses linked to him and was on leave from Germany where he was serving with the 10th Special Forces Group.
On Wednesday, he reportedly pulled a truck in front of the hotel around 8:40 a.m. local time and exploded about 15 to 20 seconds later. The explosion killed Livelsberger and injured seven others.
Investigators photograph the Tesla Cybertruck that exploded outside the lobby of the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas on New Year’s Day. (WADE VANDERVORT/AFP via Getty Images)
Suspect identified as FBI INVESTIGATES ACT OF TERRORISM AFTER BOURBON STREET ATTACK
Authorities say the truck contained gasoline and fuel tanks, as well as large firework mortars. Video of the incident shows the truck exploding in a fireball and fireworks can also be seen shooting off in all directions. A bystander can also be seen just steps away from the truck as it goes up in flames.
An Army spokesman told Fox News that Livelsberger entered active duty in the Army in January 2006 and reached the rank of master sergeant. Livelsberger spent time at the base once known as Fort Bragg, a massive military base in North Carolina that is home to the Army’s Special Forces Command.
Livelsberger joined the National Guard from March 2011 to July 2012, followed by a stint in the Army Reserve from July 2012 to December 2012. He joined the active military in December 2012 and was a US Army Special Operations soldier.
Additionally, the US Army Special Operations Command confirms that Livelsberger was on authorized leave at the time of his death.
Records reviewed by Fox News Digital show Livelsberger’s last known address as a US Armed Forces overseas mailing address. Before that, a house in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio was listed, and before that, an apartment in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The FBI Denver announced to X on Thursday that they were at a house in Colorado Springs and would be there for several hours. The investigation is connected to the explosion in Las Vegas.
A relative told CBS News that Livelsberger’s wife had not heard from him in several days.
Sheriff of Las Vegas Kevin McMahill said during a press conference Wednesday that the Cybertruck was rented in Colorado.
Earlier Wednesday morning, Jabbar, a 42-year-old US citizen who lived in Texas, drove a white pickup truck into a crowd on the famous Bourbon Street in New Orleans, killing 15 people. The FBI said it was investigating the attack as an act of terrorism.
On Thursday, the FBI in Houston said it had executed a court-authorized search and cleared the 12000 block of Crescent Peak Drive in connection with the New Orleans attack. The agency said there was no threat to the residents of the area and was unable to provide more details about the search due to the “ongoing search”.
The truck Jabbar was driving was rented from peer-to-peer car rental company Turo, as was the Cybertruck that caught fire in Las Vegas. Jabbar’s rental vehicle also placed an ISIS flag on its trailer hitch.
The Cybertruck did not have an ISIS flag like the truck in New Orleans.
Flames rise from a Tesla Cybertruck after it exploded outside the Trump International Las Vegas hotel, in Las Vegas, Nevada, on January 1, 2025. (Alcides Antunes/via REUTERS)
WHO IS SHAMSUD DIN JABBAR? WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT NEW ORLEANS’ NEW YEAR’S TERRORIST SUSPECT
A Tur spokesperson told Fox News Digital that the company does not believe any of the renters in the Las Vegas and New Orleans attacks had a criminal background that would identify them as a security threat.
Meanwhile, McMahill said the Cybertruck withstood much of Wednesday’s blast and was still fully intact afterward.
“The fact that this is a Cybertruck really limited the damage that happened inside the valet because most of the blast went through the truck and out,” McMahill said. “In fact, if you look at that footage, you’ll see that the front glass door at the Trump Hotel wasn’t even shattered by the blast.”
The preliminary investigation up to this point included information from Tesla CEO Elon Muskwhich McMahill said provided a lot of information about how the vehicle was locked after it exploded due to the force of the explosion.
Investigators worked at the scene after a person drove a 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
Musk also helped out when surveillance footage needed to be captured from Tesla filling stations across the country.
The billionaire kept followers updated on the Cybertruck explosion on his social media platform X.
“We have now confirmed that the explosion was caused by a very large firework and/or bomb carried in the bed of the rented Cybertruck and was not related to the vehicle itself. All vehicle telemetry was positive at the time of the explosion,” Musk wrote in a post.
“Evil goons chose the wrong vehicle for a terrorist attack. The Cybertruck actually stopped the blast and directed the blast upwards,” he said in another post. – Not even the glass door of the lobby was broken.
