The death toll in the New Orleans vehicle ramming attack has now risen to at least 15 people, the FBI announced on Wednesday afternoon, Jan. 1. The updated fatalities were confirmed just after the suspect in the attack was identified.
The deceased suspect responsible for driving through a crowd of people celebrating the new year on Bourbon Street has been identified as 42-year-old Shamsud-Din Jabbar, a U.S. citizen from Texas, the FBI said in a news release. He was driving a Ford pickup truck, which appears to have been rented, and the FBI says they are working to confirm how the subject came into possession of the vehicle.
An ISIS flag was located in the vehicle, and the FBI is working to determine the subject’s potential associations and affiliations with terrorist organizations. Weapons and a potential IED were located in the subject’s vehicle. Other potential IEDs were also located in the French Quarter. The FBI’s special agent bomb technicians are working with law enforcement partners to determine if any of these devices are viable, and they will work to render those devices safe, the FBI statement says.
The FBI is the lead investigative agency, and says they are working with their partners to investigate the attack as an act of terrorism. “We are aggressively running down all leads to identify any possible associates of the subject,” the statement said.
The FBI has set up a digital tip line, and are asking anyone with information or video of the incident to submit them to www.fbi.gov/bourbonstreetattack or call 1-800-CALL-FBI.