FBI Investigates Possible Link Between Tesla Explosion and New Orleans Attack

Summary

• Person in Cybertruck killed, seven injured in blast.
• FBI investigating motive, possible terrorism link.
• Incident occurred hours after man drove truck into crowd in New Orleans.

LAS VEGAS, Nevada, January 2 (AfrikTimes) – The FBI is investigating whether there is any connection between the explosion of a Tesla Cybertruck outside the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas and a truck attack in New Orleans on New Year’s Day that killed 15 people, officials said.

Gasoline canisters and large firework mortars were packed into the Cybertruck that burst into flames shortly after the driver intentionally crashed the vehicle into a crowd of New Year’s revelers in New Orleans’ French Quarter, according to officials. The driver, the sole occupant of the truck, was found dead inside, and seven people sustained minor injuries, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department said in a statement.

The FBI has identified the person driving the vehicle but was not ready to release that information, FBI special agent in charge Jeremy Schwartz told reporters on Wednesday.

Police cars and officers stand in the car park of the Trump Tower, after a Tesla Cybertruck burned at the entrance of Trump Tower, in Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. January 1, 2025.

The FBI did not return a request for more information on Thursday. The Las Vegas incident occurred just hours after a man drove a truck into crowds of New Year’s Day revelers in New Orleans, killing 15 people.

Officials have not established any link between the two events.

Videos taken by witnesses inside and outside the Las Vegas hotel showed the Cybertruck exploding, with flames pouring from the vehicle as it sat outside the hotel around 8:40 a.m. local time (1640 GMT) on Wednesday.

A spokesperson for Trump did not return a request for comment Thursday regarding the Cybertruck explosion. Eric Trump praised Las Vegas fire and law enforcement officials on Wednesday for their swift response to the explosion. The Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas is part of the Trump Organization, the company of President-elect Donald Trump, who will return to the White House on Jan. 20. Tesla CEO Elon Musk, a key supporter of Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign, is also an adviser to the incoming president.

The remains of a Tesla Cybertruck that burned at the entrance of Trump Tower are inspected in Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. January 1, 2025.

“Obviously, a Cybertruck, the Trump hotel—there’s lots of questions that we have to answer,” Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Sheriff Kevin McMahill said at a news conference.

“Detectives found gasoline canisters and large firework mortars in the bed of the truck,” a police statement said.

FBI Special Agent in Charge Jeremy Schwartz said it was still unclear whether the explosion was an act of terrorism.

A photo of the Tesla Cybertruck that exploded outside the Trump Hotel in Las Vegas. Source: Las Vegas Metropolitan Police/Youtube.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk said the explosion was not related to the 2024 model-year Cybertruck itself. “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 said in a post on X. “All vehicle telemetry was positive at the time of the explosion.”

Telemetry involves the automatic collection of data from remote sources, which is transmitted back to a central source so it can later be analyzed.

Both the Cybertruck and the vehicle used in the New Orleans attack were rented through car-sharing service Turo, McMahill said. A Turo spokesperson said the company did not believe either of the renters of the vehicles involved in the attacks in Las Vegas and New Orleans had a criminal background that would have flagged them as security threats.

The Trump Hotel was evacuated after the incident and most of the visitors were moved to another hotel.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk speaks as former President Donald Trump listens at a campaign event on Saturday in Butler, Pennsylvania.