Heartbroken family and friends set out to identify the growing number of victims after a suspected of terrorism crashed his car into a large crowd in New Orleans on New Year’s Day.
The suspect, Shamsud-Din Jabbar, was “determined to create the carnage and damage he did,” New Orleans Police Chief Anne Kirkpatrick he said.
“It was very deliberate behavior,” said Police Supt. “This man was trying to run over as many people as he could.”
At least 15 people were killed Wednesday morning in a terrorist attack and dozens were injured, the FBI said.
Coroner from New Orleans, Dr. Dwight McKenna, said in a statement late Wednesday that he would release the names of the dead after the autopsies were completed, and that they had spoken with next of kin.
Suspect identified as FBI INVESTIGATES ACT OF TERRORISM AFTER BOURBON STREET ATTACK
Princeton Tigers wide receiver Tiger Bech (7) is tackled by Pennsylvania Quakers running back Hunter Hayes (8) during the game between the Penn Quakers and the Princeton Tigers on November 17, 2018 at Powers Field in Princeton, NJ. (Andy Lewis/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Tiger Beach, 27
Former Princeton football player Tiger Bech, 27, was killed in the attack on Bourbon Street.
In a heartfelt post, his brother, Jack Bech, recalled the All-Ivy League running back who played for Princeton from 2016-18.
“I love you always bro! You inspired me every day, now you can be with me at all times,” he wrote in a social media post. “I got this family T, don’t worry. This is for us.”
He graduated from the Catholic high school of St. Thomas More in Lafayette, Louisiana in 2015, the school said in a news release.
“The community of St. Thomas More Catholic High School mourns the loss of one of our own, Tiger Bech, who passed away early this morning as a result of the New Year’s Eve attack in New Orleans,” they wrote. “Tiger graduated in 2015 and excelled in football, lacrosse and track and field.”
“Please keep the Bech family in your prayers during this time,” they said.
Trevant Hayes, 20, sits in the French Quarter following the death of his friend, Nikyra Dedeaux, 18, after a pickup truck plowed into pedestrians on Bourbon Street followed by a shooting in the French Quarter in New Orleans, Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Matthew Hinton)
Nikyra Dedeaux, 18
Dedeaux was an aspiring nurse when she was hit by a speeding truck during a New Year’s Eve party.
Her friend, Zion Parsons, told The Associated Press that she was hit by the truck, saying he was “lucky to be alive.”
“The truck hit the corner and went through it throwing people like in a movie scene, throwing people up in the air,” Parsons, 18, told The Associated Press. “It hit her and threw her at least 30 feet, and I was just lucky to be alive.”
WHO IS SHAMSUD DIN JABBAR? WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT NEW ORLEANS’ NEW YEAR’S TERRORIST SUSPECT
Parsons said the 18-year-old had a job at the hospital and was about to start college.
“She had her own way of thinking – she didn’t have everything figured out, but she had a plan in place,” he said.
Investigators work 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)
Nicole Perez, 28
Nicole Perez was a single mother to her 4-year-old son when she was killed in a truck attack in New Orleans, her employer confirmed to The Associated Press.
Perez was recently promoted to manager at Kimmy’s Deli in Metarie, Louisiana and “he was really excited about it,” deli owner Kimberly Usher said in a phone interview. Usher confirmed Perez’s death through her sister, who also works for her.
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“She was a really good mom,” said Usher, who set up a GoFundMe account to cover Perez’s funeral expenses and help with expenses for her son, who “will have to transition into a new life situation.”
Reggie Hunter has been identified as one of the victims of the January 1, 2025, attack on Bourbon Street. (Reggie Hunter via Facebook)
Reggie Hunter, 37
Reggie Hunter, 37, quit his job and headed to Bourbon Street on a whim to welcome 2025, said his cousin Shirell Jackson. Nola.com.
“They decided to go out there because he came home from work and said, ‘Hey, the Sugar Bowl is tomorrow. It’s New Year’s Eve. We’re going to town,'” Jackson told the outlet. “Just something as simple as that. ‘Hey bro, wanna take me to town?'”
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Hunter died from his injuries, Jackson said. Jackson was one of dozens injured in the attack.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
