Authorities are still searching for potential accomplices to Shamsud-Din Jabbar, who drove a truck into a New Orleans crowd before being killed in a shootout with police on Wednesday.
Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill told Fox News that there is evidence that Jabbar worked alongside accomplices to coordinate the attack, although she and other officials have declined to offer specifics. Jabbar’s attack killed at least 15 people and wounded dozens of others.
“In Louisiana, we have the death penalty, and we will carry it out!” Murrill wrote on X.
Jabbar had posted videos to social media prior to his attack expressing allegiance to the Islamic State. The FBI’s investigation has now spread across multiple states, though the number of potential accomplices remains unknown.
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“FBI special agents and our law enforcement partners are currently conducting a number of court-authorized search warrants in New Orleans and other states,” the bureau said in a statement. “The FBI’s Evidence Response Team continues to process the crime scene to meticulously gather all relevant evidence.”
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The FBI said it does not believe the driver acted alone. Investigators found guns and what appeared to be an improvised explosive device inside Jabbar’s truck along with other devices elsewhere in the French Quarter.
Jabbar, a U.S. native born in Texas, had previously served in the U.S. military. Authorities are still investigating how and when he became radicalized.
Jabbar served in the Army as a Human Resource Specialist and Information Technology (IT) Specialist from March 2007 until January 2015.
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Following active duty, he served in the Army Reserves as an IT Specialist from January 2015 until July 2020.
During his tenure, he deployed to Afghanistan from February 2009 to January 2010.
Authorities have already searched an AirBnB in New Orleans believed to be connected to Jabbar. They are also executing a search warrant at his main residence in Houston, Texas.
The attack led authorities to postpone the Sugar Bowl on Wednesday night. The sporting event is now scheduled to take place on Thursday night. Some officials have called for the event to be delayed further.
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Meanwhile, President-elect Trump called on the CIA to get involved in the investigation, blasting Jabbar as “violent scum” and the current administration as “incompetent and corrupt.”
His statement came after a Tesla Cybertruck exploded outside Trump Hotel in Las Vegas. It remains unclear whether the bombing, which killed one person, is linked to the New Orleans attack.
“Our Country is a disaster, a laughing stock all over the World! This is what happens when you have OPEN BORDERS, with weak, ineffective, and virtually nonexistent leadership. The DOJ, FBI, and Democrat state and local prosecutors have not done their job. They are incompetent and corrupt, having spent all of their waking hours unlawfully attacking their political opponent, ME, rather than focusing on protecting Americans from the outside and inside violent SCUM that has infiltrated all aspects of our government, and our Nation itself,” Trump wrote on social media.
“Democrats should be ashamed of themselves for allowing this to happen to our Country. The CIA must get involved, NOW, before it is too late. The USA is breaking down – A violent erosion of Safety, National Security, and Democracy is taking place all across our Nation. Only strength and powerful leadership will stop it. See you on January 20th. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!” he added.
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