At Least 15 Killed in New Orleans After Car Drives Through Crowd During New Year’s Celebration

At least 15 people have died and dozens have been injured after a truck struck a crowd of revelers early on New Year’s Day in New Orleans.

The suspect officials have described as “trying to run over as many people as he possibly could” after driving a vehicle into a crowd during New Year’s celebrations, has been identified as Texas resident Shamsud Din Jabbar. Jabbar, 42, was an army veteran, authorities said. Officials also announced that the federal government is now in charge of the investigation, which they are investigating as a terrorist act.

“We do not believe that Jabbar was solely responsible. We are aggressively running down every lead, including those of his known associates. That’s why we need the public’s help,” FBI New Orleans special agent-in-charge Alethea Duncan said during a press conference on Wednesday afternoon.

“An ISIS flag was located on the trailer hitch of the vehicle. The FBI is working to determine the subject’s potential associations and affiliations with terrorist organizations, weapons, and potential improvised explosive devices,” Duncan added. “IEDs [improvised explosive devices] were located in the subject’s vehicle, other potential IEDs were also located in the French Quarter. As of now, two IEDs have been found and rendered safe.”

The death toll rose on Wednesday evening from early reports of 10 to 15 people killed, according to an official statement from New Orleans Coroner Dr. Dwight McKenna, via CNN. More than 30 others were injured in New Orleans after a vehicle was purposely driven into a crowd during New Year’s celebrations, per authorities. In a statement on its website, the City of New Orleans confirmed the “mass casualty incident involving a vehicle that drove into a large crowd on Canal and Bourbon Street.”

After driving into the crowd, the suspect opened fire and shot two police officers, who are in stable condition at a local hospital. The FBI confirmed this morning that the driver responsible is now dead, according to NBC, and the agency will investigate the crime as an “act of terrorism.”

“We do know that the city of New Orleans was impacted by a terrorist attack,” Mayor LaToya Cantrell said at a morning news conference.

Anne Kirkpatrick, superintendent of the New Orleans Police Department, said the suspect, who drove a pickup truck, traveled down Bourbon Street with the intent of causing mass casualties. He was “hellbent on creating carnage,” Kirkpatrick said, adding that the suspect drove around barricades meant to stop cars from entering the area.

“This man was trying to run over as many people as he possibly could. It was not a DUI situation,” she said.

Both President Joe Biden and President-elect Donald Trump made statements on the incident. “I am grateful for the brave and swift response of local law enforcement in preventing even greater death and injury,” Biden said. “I have directed my team to ensure every resource is available as federal, state, and local law enforcement work assiduously to get to the bottom of what happened as quickly as possible and to ensure that there is no remaining threat of any kind.”

On Truth Social, Trump called the crime an act of “true evil” and railed against criminals crossing the border. “When I said that the criminals coming in are far worse than the criminals we have in our country, that statement was constantly refuted by Democrats and the Fake News Media, but it turned out to be true,” Trump said. “The crime rate in our country is at a level that nobody has ever seen before. Our hearts are with all of the innocent victims and their loved ones, including the brave officers of the New Orleans Police Department. The Trump Administration will fully support the City of New Orleans as they investigate and recover from this act of pure evil!”

This article was updated to include the name of the suspect, per authorities, details about the ongoing investigation, and the coroner confirming 15 people have died as of Wednesday evening.