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FBI Believes New Orleans Attack Suspect Didn't Act Alone; Possible Explosive Devices Found Around French Quarter; Cybertruck Explodes At Entrance Of Trump Hotel In Las Vegas; FBI Investigating New Orleans Attack As Act Of Terrorism; Officials Search For Possible Accomplices In NOLA Attack; President Biden Briefed On Deadly New Orleans Truck Ramming Attack; Sugar Bowl Postponed To Thursday After New Orleans Attack. Aired 4-5p ET
Aired January 01, 2025 - 16:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[16:00:17]
ANNOUNCER: This is CNN Breaking News.
JULIA CHATTERLEY, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR, "FIRST MOVE": Hello and welcome to our viewers from all around the world. I am Julia Chatterley in New York, and I want to get straight to our breaking news this hour.
The FBI says a US Army veteran is behind todays deadly truck attack in New Orleans, and authorities don't believe the suspect acted alone.
We are learning new details about the driver who plowed into a crowd celebrating the New Year, killing at least ten people and injuring dozens more.
The FBI says he was a 42-year-old US citizen from Texas. They say he had an ISIS Flag in the truck, as well as weapons and potential explosive devices. The rampage is being investigated as terrorism.
It happened on world famous Bourbon Street in the French Quarter a few hours after midnight. Police say the driver was, "hell bent on creating carnage." They say he shot and injured two officers after ramming the crowd. Police fired back, killing him at the scene.
One witness describes some terrifying moments.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The boo came through with a truck and hit about four people and shot about four people, There was about eight people --
REPORTER: And so you saw him got out and shoot?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, he was in the car. He didn't get out. He was already h it and --
(END VIDEO CLIP) CHATTERLEY: And just to reiterate, the FBI says it does not believe the suspect was "solely responsible." It gave more details about the attack just a short time ago.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ALETHEA DUNCAN, ASSISTANT SPECIAL AGENT IN CHARGE, FBI NEW ORLEANS: The FBI is the lead investigative agency, and we are investigating this as an attack of terrorism, along with our partners.
Today, at approximately 3:15 AM Central Standard Time, an individual drove a pickup truck into a crowd on Bourbon Street in New Orleans, killing at least ten individuals and injuring dozens more.
After hitting the crowd, he exited the vehicle and fired upon local law enforcement. Law enforcement returned fire, and the subject was pronounced deceased at the scene.
Two law enforcement officers were injured and transported to local hospitals. The subject has been identified as 42-year-old Shamsud-Din Jabbar, a US born citizen from Texas. He was driving a Ford pickup truck, which appears to be rented, and we are working to confirm how the subject became in possession of this vehicle.
An ISIS flag was located on the trailer hitch of the vehicle, and the FBI is working to determine the subject's potential associations and affiliations with terrorist organizations.
Weapons and potential improvised explosive devices, IEDs, 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 FBI special agent bomb technicians, as well as our local law enforcement partners, have been working to determine if any of these devices are viable, and they will work to render those devices safe.
The FBI, we are working with our partners to investigate this as an act of terrorism. We are aggressively running down all of the leads to identify the possible subject's associates. We are working to ensure that there is no further threat.
We do not believe that Jabbar was solely responsible. We are aggressively running down every lead, including those of his known associates. That is why we need the public's help. We are asking if anybody has any interactions with Shamsud-Din Jabbar in the last 72 hours that you contact us.
The FBI is asking the public's help. We are asking anyone who has information, video or pictures to provide it to the FBI. We have set up a digital tip line, as well as our 1-800 number, 1-800-CALL-FBI.
Please provide us with any information that can assist us in this investigation.
(END VIDEO CLIP) CHATTERLEY: And Omar Jimenez is in New Orleans and has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Sudden terror on Bourbon Street.
KIMBERLY STRICKLIN, WITNESS: There were just bodies and the screams, you cannot think about, you know, on here that -- it was chaos and very, very scary.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everything in the car is hitting, it is getting thrown.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A vehicle ran through a crowd of people. There's multiple injuries, multiple casualties. We need you at Canal and Bourbon.
JIMENEZ (voice over): Just hours after the clock struck midnight, the driver in a pickup truck went around barricades, according to police, killing those celebrating New Year's Eve along the iconic street.
At least ten people were killed, dozens others injured.
[16:05:08]
ANNE KIRKPATRICK, SUPERINTENDENT, NEW ORLEANS POLICE DEPARTMENT: This is not just an act of terrorism. This is evil.
JIMENEZ (voice over): The suspect, identified as Shamsud-Din Jabbar, a 42-year-old man from Texas who previously served in the US military. He was driving a privately rented pickup truck from Turo, an Airbnb type rental site for cars.
DUNCAN: An ISIS flag was located on the trailer hitch of the vehicle, and the FBI is working to determine the subject's potential associations and affiliations with terrorist organizations.
JIMENEZ (voice over): Once the vehicle stopped, the driver reportedly opened fire on responding police officers.
DUNCAN: Law enforcement returned fire and the subject was pronounced deceased at the scene. Two law enforcement officers were injured and transported to local hospitals.
JIMENEZ (voice over): Witnesses are asking questions about why the city's steel mechanical barricades weren't up prior to the attack.
JOSE LIERAS, WITNESS: There was police there at the entrance. A lot of police there, but the metal barricades were not up.
MAYOR LATOYA CANTRELL, NEW ORLEANS: Bollards were not up because they are near completion.
JIMENEZ (voice over): The FBI, which has taken over the investigation, does not believe the suspect acted alone. DUNCAN: We are aggressively running down every lead, including those of his known associates.
JIMENEZ (voice over): And the Sugar Bowl for college football, scheduled to be held in New Orleans this evening, has been postponed.
JEFF HUNDLEY, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, ALLSTATE SUGAR BOWL: All agree that it is in the best interest of everybody and public safety that we postpone the game for 24 hours.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHATTERLEY: Okay, let's bring in CNN law enforcement contributor, Steve Moore.
Steve, good to have you with us. I think one of the most immediate questions at this moment is what evidence does the FBI have that makes them confident that this individual didn't act alone beyond that ISIS flag that we know was on the vehicle?
STEVE MOORE, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT CONTRIBUTOR: Well, I think what we are hearing, and this is yet to be confirmed, but I am hearing that they have film of people other than the driver actually placing the IEDs. The other indication would be that there is questions about whether this individual, Jabbar, was the one who actually rented the vehicle.
If somebody else rented it. Obviously, you have somebody who is involved, wittingly or unwittingly, but, the thing that strikes me on this is it has been so long since we have had a multiple person attack like this that was planned to an extreme degree. It is just -- we thought we were kind of past that, at least temporarily, I guess. temporarily is over now.
CHATTERLEY: No. So they are going to be poring over street cameras, perhaps social media cameras. Anybody that was taking videos at the time to see whether they can potentially identify these individuals that you're suggesting may have perhaps been helping this accomplice with the IEDs. Obviously, they said earlier in that press conference, they are still sweeping and trying to make sure that they know where everything is and where things aren't.
MOORE: Yes, and that's exactly right and what they are going to be trying to do is find out how this this guy and his accomplices, if any, were radicalized, whether they actually had any kind of communication with ISIS overseas or whether it was a self- radicalization or a group, say, involved together in other activities that bonded. That is going to be important.
But if it turns out that they had backing from ISIS, this is going to be really amazing, because first of all, we thought that ISIS was kind of on the decline right now. So there is so much going on that could actually reach out to foreign relations and things like that. So this is going to be a big find when the Bureau determines what is going on.
The other thing is this guy used to be a military -- used to be military personnel, and he is familiar with Op-Sec, Operational Security. So it is quite possible that he very carefully covered his tracks in everything that he was doing.
CHATTERLEY: And I think to your point, if that is what we are looking at, at the very least, an ISIS-inspired attack to the very worst, which is some form of ISIS sponsored attack and the range there is enormous.
MOORE: Exactly.
CHATTERLEY: And to your point, we just have to wait for the investigation and see what they uncover as it continues.
In the meantime, the college football game, the Sugar Bowl has been postponed for 24 hours. And the governor said, look, I am going to be there. I will be there.
The suggestion was, look, we are just taking an abundance of caution at this stage. But, Steve, based on what we are discussing now, is the threat over? Can they be confident that the threat is over and that they can protect people?
MOORE: Well, that is an excellent question.
[16:10:10]
And I think that is why they are -- and I consider it a wise decision delaying this for 24 hours. That gives the FBI enough time to determine at least a preliminary decision whether this was a group of people going out with one big attack, and they were all planning on ending it there, or whether this was a series of attacks and the fact that the first one, if there is more than one, the first one was on Bourbon Street, which is walking distance from the stadium. Then, you know, then you might see this game ultimately canceled.
However, they are giving the FBI probably a good 12 hours, really in practice to say whether or not they have evidence that this is the first of many or the first of one.
So there is a lot going on right now and the FBI is absolutely throwing resources at this.
CHATTERLEY: There were a number of questions asked today as well about potential security failures. The fact that the bollards weren't raised because they were malfunctioning in the street where this attack took place, that there was policemen there, there were patrol cars, but that the attacker managed to go up the curb on the sidewalk and actually get access that way.
Steve, what extra security measures would you want to see in place, to your point about the fact that the FBI clearly are throwing resources at this, but there are events upcoming that pose a risk.
MOORE: Absolutely, Julia.
I mean, look at what they said. It was extremely frustrating for me to listen to when they said that we didn't anticipate that somebody who would be using a vehicle as a weapon against pedestrians would resort to driving on a sidewalk.
Well, I find it hard to believe they didn't.
When the mayor says the bollards weren't there because they were nearing completion, well, that's politician speak for we didn't get it done in time.
This was a disastrous press conference, frankly, in my opinion, it was just chest beating and being caught in basically some incompetence.
So they -- like, at the recent parade for the World Series winners in LA, I was there. They had dump trucks, they had earth movers full of stuff that could not be moved by anything smaller than a tank blocking the cross street, so nobody could get on there with a vehicle and, and kill pedestrians.
So why you wouldn't do that as part of your plan for a bowl game, New Year's Eve and the upcoming Super Bowl is really kind of -- I am at a loss.
CHATTERLEY: Steve, we have some fresh images, video images, we believe, of the truck turning into Bourbon Street. I just want to play it for our viewers. And I also want to caution that this is disturbing video, but we are showing it.
I want to get your take on it. Let's just -- let's just watch that first.
(VIDEO CLIP PLAYS)
CHATTERLEY: Okay, so we are watching that now and you can see that white pickup truck in the center of your image there. And so obviously, we are seeing the vehicle moving at this stage. And this is --
MOORE: There is a left turn across --
CHATTERLEY: Yes, this is the moment where we see it there turning.
MOORE: Y es. Okay. Wow.
CHATTERLEY: And we saw an enormous pickup in speed.
MOORE: Yes, first of all, there was nothing to even slow him down. They said, well, we had police officers. Well, can a police officer stop a truck? No, no, we just saw what happened.
They were -- they did not have protection that they claim that they were going to or claim that they did. The other thing, and this is getting down into details and esoteric things, but that pickup was an electric vehicle which has a massive rate of acceleration and it has massive weight. It is probably five 5,000 pounds to three tons.
What would that be like? Fifteen hundred kilos, or I will do the math later, but it is a huge vehicle and it is not going to stop for anybody.
This was a planned vehicle. They didn't attack in a Honda. They went and procured a vehicle they didn't have. They rented an electric pickup truck, which would likely cause the most damage.
[16:15:07]
CHATTERLEY: Yes, and obviously the police have said that and they said that earlier today that this was someone looking to create real carnage.
Steve Moore, sir, thank you so much for joining us. We will speak to you soon.
Now joining us on the phone is a New Orleans resident, Eric Styles.
Eric, thank you so much for your time, and can you just explain first and foremost where you are, because I believe your home is just two blocks from Bourbon Street and you were unable to get back home earlier today due to obviously this now being a restricted area.
ERIC STYLES, NEW ORLEANS RESIDENT (via phone): That's correct, even though I didn't witness the event, I did hear a lot of sirens last night, but that's not uncommon for the French Quarter, particularly on a holiday weekend like this.
As soon as I stepped out of my apartment this morning, I was ushered to the corner by a State Trooper who informed me that my block was closed and I couldn't even return back to my apartment. So I've been essentially wandering around the French Quarter. I was lucky enough to stop by Turtle Bay, and they're letting me stay here on Decatur Street for now.
But several, several blocks of Bourbon Street is shut down and from my understanding, it is the bomb squad searching for suspicious packages. About 9:15 this morning, I did hear a muffled explosion. From what I've been able to gather, they have been removing suspicious packages, and I think detonating them on the spot.
It is going to be quite a task for them, considering last night was New Year's Eve and Bourbon Street is notorious for its litter. Right now, the nightly litter is about knee deep, running the length of Bourbon Street.
So it is going to be quite an effort for the bomb squad to search for any suspicious package and clear the area.
CHATTERLEY: Eric, the FBI are calling this an act of terrorism. They have just said that they don't believe that the man that did this worked alone. We know that there was an ISIS flag on his truck. Can I ask just what people are saying that you're talking to and how you feel and whether you feel it is safe to be in the French Quarter at this moment?
STYLES: Well, this morning, we are all quite numb. I am very sympathetic to a lot of the tourists who are staying at hotels on Bourbon Street. They were immediately evacuated and weren't allowed to return to their building.
There is probably a lot of them that have been up all night, and they're kind of wandering around the French Quarter just trying to find a place to sit down and get their composure.
But as far as the terrorist aspect, yes, yes, I think we are all kind of resigned to that fact. I know everybody that experiences something like this in their city. They always imagine it, you know, it wouldn't happen here.
I heard one of the city officials say they weren't anticipating this. If you just look at the news going back to just a few weeks ago, there was a lot of these sort of attacks in Germany, during Christmas parades, so it is not unheard of on a global scale.
A lot of these sort of situations occur in China. They call it again, revenge against society type of event. And I am just dumbfounded our officials were unable to even anticipate this, not to mention the bollard situation. Since they've installed those bollards, they haven't functioned properly. They are supposed to be able to slide back and forth on a track across Bourbon Street, let some vehicles in, and then close it off.
But those tracks are often filled with litter. They don't operate properly and quite often the officials get lazy, they leave them open so their vehicles can pass through easily.
I think, a lot of people dropped the ball last night.
CHATTERLEY: Eric, obviously, we have to wait for the investigation to find out what happened, but I think you're voicing a degree of frustration, I think that that people simply don't feel safe. And perhaps, something like this perhaps could have been avoided.
STYLES: Oh, most definitely. I mean, we -- yes, right now, it is probably every cop in the state is down here, but even last night, you know, State Troopers on every corner. But a trooper by himself or an NOPD on a horse is not going to stop a vehicle like that.
And especially at that intersection of Bourbon and Canal, that's a high traffic area for Canal.
[16:20:10]
And I saw the video. It looked like the guy just drove up on the sidewalk, that was ridiculous that he had that opportunity.
CHATTERLEY: Eric, our thoughts are with you. We hope you get home safely soon and obviously, with the entire city there and communities.
Eric Styles in New Orleans there, thank you, sir.
Now, authorities are also investigating an incident in Las Vegas as a potential terrorist attack. That is according to a law enforcement official who has been briefed. It is after a Tesla cybertruck exploded at the entrance of the Trump International Hotel. The person inside the cybertruck was killed by the fire and subsequent explosion. Elon Musk posted on the platform, X, that the whole Tesla senior team is investigating as well.
A short time ago, Veronica Miracle provided the latest.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VERONICA MIRACLE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Given what has happened in New Orleans, police and investigators, they are very concerned about this. One person has died and seven people have minor injuries from this explosion that happened right at the entrance of Trump Tower in Las Vegas.
We just heard from the Las Vegas Sheriff who went in detail about what exactly happened. So take a listen really quick.
SHERIFF KEVIN MCMAHILL, LAS VEGAS: At 8:40 AM. Las Vegas time, we received a report of an explosion and a fire at the Trump Towers, the iconic hotel that you see behind me. We were told that a 2024 cybertruck pulled up to the front of the hotel and in fact, I can tell you, it pulled right up to the glass entrance doors of the hotel. We saw that smoke start showing from the vehicle, and then a large explosion from the truck occurs.
MIRACLE: Now, the sheriff was quick to say that they do not believe that there is any further threat to the community, but also did mention they are, of course, looking into many different leads. They still have many questions that still are unanswered.
They don't know exactly why this exploded. If it was an issue with the car, they said that that car started smoking before it exploded. They don't know if it was an explosion because of other nefarious reasons, so they are looking into it, but they believe at this time that there is no further threat to the community.
CNN has reached out to Tesla for comment. We have not yet heard back.
And President-elect Trump's son, Eric Trump did tweet out extending gratitude to the Las Vegas Fire Department and the local law enforcement for their quick response in making sure that the hotel was okay and those who were injured were quickly cared for.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHATTERLEY: Thanks to Veronica Miracle there.
Now still to come for us, questions swirling amid the tragedy in New Orleans as the FBI searches for possible accomplices to the attack. More details ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:25:07]
CHATTERLEY: Welcome back. And we return to our coverage of the horrendous attack in New Orleans. At least ten people are dead and 35 others injured after a man drove through a crowd with a truck during New Year's Eve celebrations.
The suspect died after getting into a gunfire with police and has been identified as 42-year-old Shamsud-Din Jabbar.
The FBI is searching for anyone who may have worked with the attacker, saying they don't think he acted alone. They are investigating this incident as an act of terrorism. Officials say Jabbar was a US citizen from Texas who also served in the US Army. He had an ISIS flag during the attack, as well as weapons and potential explosive devices.
Earlier, CNN spoke with a witness to the attack. He talked about what it was like watching the destruction and death and not being able to help. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JIMMY COTHRAN, WITNESS: It was just unimaginable casualty. I mean, just the disfigurement and the bodies strewn. Something you can't unsee, you'll never forget. Directly at our feet was definitely a mother twisted up, obviously deceased.
We counted around eight bodies very quickly, right in our area. One gentleman crushed, had tire tracks across his back. Once they rolled him over, he had tire tracks on his front. He was completely crushed. Another girl, young, small girl, was dancing when we were coming up the street, and she was just completely flat in the middle, dead center. Another woman just brutally run over, but still agonizing.
I am certified in CPR and first responder training, and they wouldn't let us help. They locked us all inside, which is understandable, but nobody else was helping. So, that was even tougher, but just the fact that these people are somebodies' people, and they're not going to be there this morning. It is rough.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHATTERLEY: Okay, joining us now, Jamil Jaffer. He is former counsel to the assistant attorney general for the US National Security. He has also served as a former associate counsel to President George W. Bush.
Sir, good to have you on the show.
What we think we are looking at here, at least from what the authorities are saying, at the very least, is some kind of ISIS inspired attack, perhaps the very worst, some form of ISIS sponsored attack.
Your immediate observations on what we've seen and heard today?
JAMIL JAFFER, FORMER COUNSEL TO THE ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL FOR US NATIONAL SECURITY: Well, Julia, obviously a concerning situation there taking place in New Orleans with ten dead at least, maybe 30 or more injured. What we know now is that the man involved in the attack Shamsud-Din Jabbar apparently had an ISIS flag in his car or on the back of the pickup truck. He also apparently had some IEDs stored in coolers in the back of the truck as well.
We also understand now we are hearing reporting that apparently, there were three men and a woman identified putting in place what appear to be suspected IEDs, improvised explosive devices in other parts of the French Quarter as well.
So, it appears that it may have been a coordinated attack between this individual and a number of others. They are currently on the hunt for those other individuals. He was obviously killed in the incident, but the biggest concern here, obviously is, is this the beginning of more attacks?
If there were four people coordinating, potentially five potentially in New Orleans, might there be other attacks in the offing, whether in New Orleans or elsewhere? That's what the authorities are most concerned about. That's why they want to identify these other individuals involved and get their hands on them.
CHATTERLEY: What would you be looking for, Jamil, if you did want to tie this to some more concerted terrorism effort and affiliated, as we mentioned, with the sticker or the flag that we believe was on the truck?
JAFFER: Well, I think what they will probably do is they'll be looking at his devices, any phones he had on him, any information they can identify. Apparently, this truck was rented through a Turo ride car sharing app. So identify what e-mail address he used to get in touch with the person to rent that car and see if they can identify whether he is in communication with other individuals, other potential groups that might be plotting other attacks in other cities or in New Orleans itself.
As you know, the Sugar Bowl was supposed to be held later today. It has now been pushed to tomorrow, but that looks like it is going to go forward.
The Super Bowl is in a few weeks in New Orleans as well, and so there are concerns about New Orleans itself, but across the country, one might wonder if this is just the beginning of a series of attacks around the inauguration coming up here on January 20th in Washington, DC and the like.
[16:30:10]
CHATTERLEY: And I think one of the other critical questions that we've certainly been asking now throughout the day, as we've gathered more information about this individual is how and when the radicalization took place. And it goes to your point about checking his digital footprint, his conversations, Google searches, for example, just to understand the thinking behind this individual and perhaps known associates that obviously the FBI are investigating. JAFFER: Julia, that's exactly right. I mean, look, what we what we
know about him thus far is he's apparently a U.S. citizen from Texas. He was in the U.S. Military, as we understand it. It appears that he had an honorable discharge. There's also been some discussion, we've seen some reporting, suggesting that he had financial difficulties. There were some court filings that we're aware of that indicated he had some financial trouble, some debts and the like.
So one might wonder whether those things came together. He also did get out of his car after driving to this crowd of individuals. He got out of his car and exchanged fire with police. And so we'll find out more about his military training as well as we go forward. But the concern, of course, is how does an American citizen, you know, here who served in the military, ostensibly honorably turn into a killer, turn into a terrorist, turn into somebody who's affiliated, ostensibly with ISIS, with this flag on his car and killing people, civilians, you know, just sort of enjoying themselves in revelry after New Year's Eve?
That's obviously the big concern is, how does that happen? How do we prevent it from happening? How do we ensure there aren't others who have been radicalized like him? As we know, ISIS has been trying for years to radicalize Americans in the United States to conduct attacks here, as well as in our allied countries in Europe.
CHATTERLEY: Which is exactly what I was going to ask you next. You touched upon the point. We have a number of very important events coming up, not only in New Orleans with this postponed Sugar Bowl and college football game, but to your point, we have a funeral for President Carter coming up. We also have an inauguration later on in January 2.
From a national security perspective, how will authorities be looking at this and this investigation at this moment?
JAFFER: Well, obviously, they're going to be on a heightened state of alert. They're obviously deeply concerned about what happened in New Orleans and concerned about it happening elsewhere. Events like the Super Bowl, like the presidential inauguration on January 20th, are what are called national security special events. So law enforcement and the military, National Guard and the like, Secret Service, have been planning around those events now for months already.
They'll be now at a heightened level of alert. They'll be putting more and more officers on the streets to identify whether there are potential concerns. And then looking at the intelligence once again, to see if there are any threats to those events. And then you'll see an additional focus on events that are taking place that might not have been as high priority. The swearing in of Congress just this week. On Friday, the election of the speaker of the House, the counting of ballots.
As we know, January 6th last time was a flash point here in the United States. We may see questions around that as well. And so these national security special events will be already focused on, but now they'll be looking at other events as well that might be potential targets, and seeing if there's any intelligence suggesting there's a threat. And if there is stepping up the police and law enforcement activities around those events.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, entire nation consequences as a result of what we've seen in the past 24 hours.
Jamil, sir, good to have you with us. Thank you so much for your time.
JAFFER: Thanks for having me on, Julia.
CHATTERLEY: OK. Now, a witness to the attack described the scene as unreal. Just total chaos. Next, our coverage continues with the very latest on the New Orleans attack. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:35:16]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We were coming through the intersection and I mean it all just happened so quickly. But the guy in the pickup truck just punched the gas and mowed over the barricade and hit a pedicab passengers, and there were just bodies and the screams, I mean, you can't -- you can't unthink about, you know, unhear that. It was chaos and very, very scary.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHATTERLEY: A heart-wrenching description from a witness to the truck attack in New Orleans that killed at least 10 people. The FBI says it does not believe the driver acted alone. We're learning that investigators are reviewing video showing three men and a woman who may have been involved in placing suspected improvised explosive devices, or IEDs, in the French Quarter.
In the wake of the attack. The Sugar Bowl college football game, scheduled to be played a few hours from now, has also been postponed until Thursday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LATOYA CANTRELL, NEW ORLEANS MAYOR: The mission now is to facilitate support and coordinate safety procedures to keep our residents and our visitors safe. I have gone to the hospital along with Chief Kirkpatrick to visit our police officers and considering their injuries, they're doing well.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHATTERLEY: The driver was killed in an exchange of gunfire with officers at the scene, an area that was packed with revelers celebrating the new year.
Tom Foreman joins us now with more on the city of New Orleans and its history. Tom, good to have you with us. There were so many tourists there at
this time. It's a city that's used to dealing with enormous events. They've got the Super Bowl coming up later this year. Mardi Gras is another well-celebrated event. The question is how do you prepare and prepare for something as unthinkable as this?
TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think part of the problem here, Julia, is that this wasn't unthinkable. This is something that New Orleans, like every city in this country and every city in Europe, has been aware of, particularly since around 2015, 2016, something like that at that time, when terrorists started using vehicles much more as weapons because they're easy to get, you can do a lot of damage fast with them.
New Orleans had been advised of this being a danger. They were in the process of replacing these bollards, meant to stop traffic from going up and down that street because they admit there was a problem with them. And yet in the moment they had a police car blocking access to the road. But clearly it was inadequate because their explanation over and over again today when people said, well, how did they get around?
They kept sort of shrugging and saying, well, he drove on the sidewalk as if they hadn't considered that even though many attacks like this, of course, involve driving on the sidewalk. So I think there's some very, very hard questions ahead for them, precisely because of what you just said. They're delaying this event by 24 hours, the Sugar Bowl, big, big college football game here in an arena, the Superdome here, that can seat 75,000 people, something like that, for indoors for a football game.
The question some people are saying is how is it going to be safer 24 hours from now if you haven't caught the people involved? What difference does that make except for optics? And what do you do when Mardi Gras starts? Mardi Gras season actually starts next Monday and goes on for a couple of months. That will bring a million people into town. How do you deal with the Super Bowl coming up in a little bit more than a month? That'll bring a huge crowd to town.
And then we've got Jazz Fest, which will bring a half million people into town at least, maybe more. So this is a town that sees enormous crowds, but as much, Julia, as you know, terrorist attacks can be very hard to stop. And maybe you can't stop every one of them. There seem to be some very difficult questions that have to be asked here about what more could have and should have been done because, being a New Orleanian myself, I know I've been down there when they've used big dump trucks to block the entire road so nobody could get around. Why wasn't that happening this time? There hasn't been an answer yet.
CHATTERLEY: And they're important questions, Tom, that we will continue to ask. To your point, and I think this is a very vital one, it's also about making sure people feel safe at this moment. And there is a balance to find between not allowing an attack of terrorism and to change people's lives or alter their behavior, but particularly to your point about whether we know that they're looking for accomplices, we've got video now of three men and a woman that they're looking for. The police chief told us that they were still sweeping for potential IEDs.
To your point and question, is 24 hours enough to reassure people that it's safe to continue?
[16:40:04]
FOREMAN: You know, I'm not a cop, so I can't answer that question. The problem is the people who are the cops right now. And I don't mean just the police officers. Many street officers are doing a fine job. They're doing all they can. But the people who are in charge of this are also not answering the question. They're making grand statements about we're going to catch them and we're going to do this, but the minute somebody says, why do you think there are more, what are you going to do, how are you going to do this, in this press conference today, they grew extremely defensive about the mere fact that anybody was asking, how will you deliver on your promises?
And in the world that most Americans live in, that's a very fair question. If you made the promise, we can ask, how are you going to do it? You don't have to give away the secrets of your investigation, but you need to offer something because that is where public confidence comes from. And don't forget, Julia, this is a town that was badly, badly, badly shaken in not long ago memory by the official response to Hurricane Katrina.
So there are a lot of people in this town for a long time -- these are my friends, people who I know who are sort of like, I don't feel wildly confident in my public leaders. I want to. I want to give them the benefit of the doubt. And we know this is hard, but that's what's happening.
CHATTERLEY: Yes. Got to reestablish public confidence and public trust, to your point.
FOREMAN: Yes.
CHATTERLEY: Tom Foreman, thank you, sir.
FOREMAN: Good talking to you.
CHATTERLEY: Likewise.
OK. Stay with CNN. We continue to monitor the latest from New Orleans as authorities hunt for anyone who may have helped the suspect in today's deadly attack. Stay with CNN.
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CHATTERLEY: Welcome back. The FBI believes the suspect in the deadly New Year's attack in New Orleans didn't act alone. And they're asking for anyone who may have interacted with Shamsud-Din Jabbar in the past 22 hours to contact them. At least 10 people are dead, dozens injured. Jabbar is the suspect that they believe drove through the crowd in the city's popular Bourbon Street. After running over the crowd, the driver was killed in a shootout with police. Authorities say the suspect is a U.S. citizen from Texas. He served in
the U.S. Military and he had an ISIS flag at the time of the attack. The FBI is investigating the massacre as an act of terrorism. A senator from Louisiana is urging the community to be strong. Bill Cassidy says it's important to carry on with normal life so terrorism doesn't win.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. BILL CASSIDY (R-LA): I know that the federal response is going to be immense and vigorous and prompt. Terrorists win if we allow them to strike terror in our heart.
[16:45:01]
They lose when we continue with our lives. And let it be known if there was terrorism, we shall track them down, and we shall track them down and bring them to justice. That won't help those who are grieving, but our support for those who are grieving is what we can offer them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHATTERLEY: And President Joe Biden has been briefed on the New Orleans attack.
Priscilla Alvarez joins us now from Washington.
What's the president saying, Priscilla, at this hour?
PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, we recently just learned from the White House that the president has been taking calls and he is being briefed while he is at Camp David. There was a stop that was scheduled beforehand, before he heads back to the White House tomorrow. Now, the president has spoken with his attorney general as well as with the Department of Homeland Security secretary, among other senior officials across the government, over the course of the day, as he continues to get details.
Now, the video that you're seeing there was the president earlier in the day when he spoke to reporters. Asked about his reaction, he said, quote, "that it was one of anger and frustration." Now, earlier in the day, the president also released a statement. In that statement, he said the following. Let me read part of it to you. He said, "I am grateful for the brave and swift response of local law enforcement in preventing even greater death and injury."
He goes on to say that there is no justification for violence of any kind. I will not tolerate, and we will not tolerate any attack on any of our nation's communities. Now, again, the president is hunkered down in Camp David where he is getting these briefings from his senior officials. We also anticipate that he is going to speak at some point. He had told reporters earlier today that he planned to do so.
We have not yet received any details on when exactly that would be, but certainly the president working the phones and also speaking to state and local officials, reinforcing what we have heard from the federal government in these instances, that they will back state and local resources with federal resources and assist them as they continue this investigation.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, as you would expect. Priscilla Alvarez, thank you so much for that report.
Now, earlier, I spoke with law enforcement consultant Tom Verni. He's also a former New York police detective. I asked about how authorities can ensure now that people in New Orleans feel safe. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TOM VERNI, FORMER NYPD DETECTIVE: As someone who is familiar with New Orleans, I've been there a number of times. I've also worked down there during the Hurricane Katrina incident in 2005. So, you know, what they're trying to do now is that postponing the game I think was necessary. I think having the game is necessary, but postponing it to double or triple check the security measures in place I think is not a bad idea.
You want to reassure people that it is safe to attend, that it's still safe to be in New Orleans, and it probably is. But you want to make sure by, you know, sort of compounding the security presence you would have already had with additional resources to show that force that's out there to do that. You know, the lessons that are going to be learned here of course especially in a city like bourbon Street, which is always packed with revelers, whether it's New Year's Eve or not, is that, you know, we have to make sure to double and triple check our best laid plans to try to minimize as much as possible any sort of avenue that can be exploited by someone with a nefarious mission such as this.
You know, the idea is to either prevent or deter or minimize someone being able to go in and do the damage as such that occurred early this morning.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHATTERLEY: Now, as Tom was saying, thousands of people are in New Orleans for the now postponed Sugar Bowl. It's a college football.
Coming up, our Andy Scholes tells us what steps are being taken to make sure the crowds remain safe.
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[16:51:26]
CHATTERLEY: Welcome back. And a reminder once more of the breaking news from New Orleans. Bourbon Street is now an active crime scene after a deadly New Year's Day attack. The FBI says a U.S. born army veteran drove a truck into a crowd of revelers, killing at least 10 people and injuring dozens more. It says he had an ISIS flag on the truck, along with weapons and potential explosive devices. Similar devices were found elsewhere in the French Quarter and
authorities are now trying to determine whether the suspect had accomplices. Law enforcement sources telling CNN investigators have reviewed video showing three men and a woman who may have been involved in planting those devices.
New Orleans was supposed to host a college football playoff game tonight, but it has now been postponed.
I want to bring in Andy Scholes.
Andy, good to have you with us. Safety has to be the top priority. But this is not a decision anyone takes lightly.
ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Yes. Of course, Julia. And you know, New Orleans holds big events all the time. And it's a city where, you know, everyone stays down there in the French Quarter by the water. And, you know, the Superdome is about a mile, a mile a half away from everything. So everyone basically just walks the streets to get to the game.
So, you know, safety is paramount in a city like that. And officials there say that it is going to be safe to hold a game tomorrow. They will be having heightened security. They're going to have bomb dogs doing sweeps in and around the stadiums leading up and through the game. But like you mentioned, this was not a decision they made lightly to postpone a game like this. It's something that does not happen very often. But the CEO of the Big Sugar Bowl Game, Jeff Hundley, he explained the decision.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JEFF HUNDLEY, CEO, SUGAR BOWL GAME: We have been in consultation with ESPN, with the College Football Playoff, with the Southeastern Conference, with the University of Georgia, with Notre Dame. All parties and all agree that it's in the best interests of everybody and public safety that we postpone the game for 24 hours.
SEN. JOHN KENNEDY (R-LA): I think the mayor and the governor are very wise to postpone this ball game for 24 hours. There's just too much stuff we don't know. And it's just not worth it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHOLES: Now the two teams involved, Georgia and Notre Dame, you know, their whole teams and traveling parties, they are staying in hotels not far from where this happened. Now, they did put out statements saying that everyone on the teams and in their traveling parties were safe. But the University of Georgia also put out a statement saying that unfortunately one of their students was critically injured in the terrorist attack. So our thoughts and prayers are certainly with that student and everyone involved.
Now, in a month, New Orleans is going to be hosting the Super Bowl. And of course, there's going to be more than 70,000 fans going to go to the actual game. But even more than that, go to the actual city to take part in all the Super Bowl festivities. I mean, there's going to be more than, you know, 100,000 people going to New Orleans just to take part in the Super Bowl and all of the activities that happen around it and the NFL, they put out a statement about what happened earlier today.
I'll read you what they said. They said in part, they're saddened by what happened, adding the NFL and local host committee have been working collaboratively with local, state and federal agencies the past two years and have developed comprehensive security plans. These planning sessions will continue as they do with all major NFL events, and we are confident attendees will have a safe and enjoyable Super Bowl experience.
But, Julia, you really have to feel for all of the people that have traveled to New Orleans for this Sugar Bowl. Georgia fans, Notre Dame fans.
[16:55:05]
You know, there was such an excitement in the air for this college football playoff game. And instead now, you know, it's just tragedy, uncertainty. And then the overriding issue of whether or not it is going to be safe there in the city.
CHATTERLEY: Yes. It feels like they've got some work to do to ensure everybody feels safe, whether it's tomorrow or beyond.
Thanks for that report, Andy.
SCHOLES: All right.
CHATTERLEY: OK. Now, in New Orleans this New Year's Day, families forever changed after a driver rammed a pickup truck into a crowd on Bourbon Street. Police say 10 people were killed, at least 35 injured. A local reporter gave this emotional report just hours after the incident. Just take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CASSIE SCHIM, WDSU INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER: I'm heartbroken. I really am heartbroken. What we're seeing right now, because we are still seeing red light tarps covering things that are down. Bourbon. That's why the police officers are back now in front of us. I am -- it's just, it's just awful. A lot of people are just waking up to this. Some people have been out of their hotels this entire time because they could not even get back to their hotels because everything has been roped off.
So we have a lot of people that are just standing by, just trying to figure out what's going on. Some people are like asking, you know, do you know any of the victims? Do you know anything like that? What we do know is that at least 30 people have been injured. Ten people are now dead after this deadly incident, after a man drove through the barricades over in this area here, made it around the barricades to go through. And, I mean, it is a very heavy scene over here. Just a lot of sadness
from people in this area, a tragedy, a complete tragedy. Very tense, too, because officers never want to see anything like this happen. No one wants to see anything like this happen in the city of New Orleans. And I'll tell you, just watching the videos that viewers are sending me right now, we cannot even show you some of these videos because they are horrific.
To see anyone having lying on the ground like that, it's just -- this is not something that the city of New Orleans wants. And they have been preparing for months to make sure something like this doesn't happen, especially having more than 300 officers here last night covering this area. And so I know there's a lot of heavy hearts right now. And, you know, my prayers are going out to everyone who was impacted by this because watching some of those videos, I'm sure this was probably one of the worst nights for some people.
And so we're going to continue to keep on asking questions and try to get more information. Two officers are in the hospital right now. They do not have any life-threatening injuries right now. So that's what we know so far.
But reporting here from Bourbon and Canal Street, I'm Cassie Schim. Back to you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHATTERLEY: Thoughts and prayers with the entire city.
Stay with CNN. We'll have more on the New Orleans mass casualty incident right after this.
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