The FBI is investigating this explosion on New Year’s Day as an act of terrorism.
Early Wednesday, shortly after another deadly attack took place in New Orleans, a Tesla Cybertruck exploded outside the Trump International Hotel Las Vegas. The blast killed the Cybertruck’s driver, Matthew Livelsberger, and injured seven others. While authorities are treating both incidents as acts of terrorism, they have not directly linked them together, though some reports citing unnamed sources noted Livelsberger and the man who ran down and killed 15 people on Bourbon Street, Shamsud Din-Jabbar, are both U.S. Army veterans and served on the same military base.
Livensberger, an active duty Army Green Beret on leave at the time of the attack, rented the Tesla Cybertruck in Colorado on Saturday, then drove the truck to Las Vegas, arriving Wednesday morning. Las Vegas Metropolitan Police found gas cans, camp fuel canisters, and firework mortars in the aftermath of the explosion. Tesla CEO Elon Musk provided surveillance video from the company’s Supercharger stations as well as onboard vehicle telemetry to law enforcement as they continue to investigate the explosion.
“We have now confirmed that the explosion was caused by very large fireworks and/or a bomb carried in the bed of the rented Cybertruck and is unrelated to the vehicle itself,” Musk also elaborated in a post on Twitter/X, assuaging concerns that the incident came about due to a malfunction.
As part of the department’s press conference proceedings, Las Vegas sheriff Kevin McMahill credited the construction of the stainless steel Cybertruck in helping to contain the blast. “The fact that this was a Cybertruck really limited the damage that occurred inside of the valet because it had most of the blast. Up through the truck and out,” he said. “You’ll see that the front glass doors at the Trump hotel were not even broken by that blast which they were parked directly in front of.”
Surveillance footage (shown below, via @GamblingNews123 on X) shows how the explosion unfolded.
Authorities also shared that it found a handgun at the feet of the driver, believed to be Livelsberger, and said that he shot himself in the head just before the explosives went off. They also found the charred remains of a second firearm inside the truck, as well as Livelsberger’s passport, a military ID card, credit cards, an iPhone and a smartwatch. According to the latest information, both firearms were purchased legally.
Fortunately, no other deaths occurred from the blast. The seven other people in the proximity suffered minor injuries.
At this point in time, local law enforcement as well as the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are investigating the details of the explosion. As such, there’s been no official, definitive mention of the attacker’s motive. Authorities currently believe this incident is isolated, and there is no ongoing threat to the public.
This story is still developing, so certain elements may not currently be available, or may change as the investigation proceeds.
