Here is what we know about the Las Vegas Cybertruck explosion
Investigation of a Newly-Detected Special Operations Soldier: Matthew Livelsberger, an Active-duty Sergeant, and the Cybertuck Incident
A day after a Cybertruck exploded in the Trump Hotel valet area, law enforcement officials released more details on the progress of their investigation, including the coroner’s confirmation that the driver was a US Army soldier named Matthew Livelsberger, who died by suicide of a self-inflicted gunshot just before the explosives in the truck’s bed detonated.
Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Sheriff Kevin McMahill says Livelsberger sustained a gunshot wound to the head prior to the Cybertuck detonating; investigators believe it was self inflicted.
The truck was transported to the department’s fleet services area for further inspection, and the investigators have reported finding the subject’s iPhone, identification, and two firearms that had been purchased two days earlier. The explosive components found inside the truck consisted of consumer-grade fireworks, mortars, and aerial shells, as well as fuel enhancers and the kinds of explosive targets that can be purchased at sporting goods stores, according to Kenneth Cooper, the ATF assistant special agent in charge.
Livelsberger was an active-duty Special Operations soldier with the U.S. Army. Officials noted similarities with 42-year-old Shamsud-Din Jabbar, the man who drove a pickup truck onto the sidewalk in New Orleans, killing at least 15 and injuring dozens more on New Year’s Day. McMahill said both men served at Fort Bragg in North Carolina, though there’s no indication they served in the same unit. They used the CarRentals app to rent the vehicles used in these attacks and they both served in Afghanistan in 2009. McMahill didn’t have details on the additional parallels. Law enforcement and intelligence officials are investigating any potential connection between the two incidents.
A source who was not authorized to speak publicly on the subject tells Tom that Livelsberger had been deployed to Afghanistan five times on combat missions. He had not been deployed for the past 12 months.
The Cybertruck Explosion: Two Ugly Men in the Same Base – Investigating Collision with a High-Energy Cybertruck
On Wednesday, Las Vegas police said that crews pulled gasoline canisters, camp fuel canisters and large firework mortars from the back of the Cybertruck. Seven people were injured in the explosion, which was caught on video.
The FBI in Las Vegas is closely working with law enforcement to investigate the explosion, according to acting special agent Jeremy Schwartz. The FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force was analyzing the explosion to see if it was a terrorist attack.
It has been reported that both men served in different areas of Afghanistan in 2009, while at the same military base. There is no evidence of a connection between the incidents at this time, and the sheriff said they are not prepared to rule out anything at this point.
Turo said that the two individuals would not have been flagged by anyone. However, “as an immediate next step while we wait for law enforcement to conclude their investigations, we’re consulting with national security and counterterrorism experts to learn more about how we can get even better and play our part in helping prevent anything like this from happening ever again,” writes CEO Andre Haddad.
While the sheriff said investigators had received information about the charging stops from Elon Musk, they are also looking to see who else may have been charging at the same time to possibly find video captured by those vehicles.
The suicide bombing occurred immediately afterwards, said Sheriff Kevin Mc Mahill of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department. I don’t have any other labels for it. Police haven’t investigated the suspect’s phones or laptops yet, or identified a possible motive.