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FBI Investigating Tesla Cybertruck Blast Near Trump Hotel; FBI Looking into Associates of Suspect Shamsud-Din Jabbar; Investigators Looking at Possible Link Between New Orleans Attack, Las Vegas Explosion; Police: At Least 15 Killed in New Orleans Attack; College Football Playoff Game Postponed after Terror Attack. Aired 12-1a ET
Aired January 02, 2025 - 00:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[00:00:25]
ANNOUNCER: This is CNN Breaking News.
PAULA NEWTON, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hello, and welcome to our viewers watching from all around the world. I'm Paula Newton in Atlanta. And we begin with breaking news in two separate attacks here in the United States on New Year's Day.
U.S. President Joe Biden says investigators are looking into whether there is any possible link between a ramming attack that killed dozens of people in New Orleans by a suspect with apparent ties to ISIS, and a Tesla truck explosion outside the Trump Hotel in Las Vegas. Multiple law enforcement sources tell CNN the suspects in both incidents had military backgrounds.
Now, in New Orleans, police now say 15 people have been killed, more than 30 others injured in the truck ramming attack in the city's historic French Quarter. The FBI says it is investigating the attack as an act of terrorism.
We do want to warn you much of the video from the scene is graphic. It happened just after 3:00 a.m. local time Wednesday as people were still celebrating the new year on Bourbon Street. Investigators say the suspect plowed through the crowd in a large pickup truck. Video shows the white Ford F-150 making that sharp turn, you see it there, on to Bourbon Street, past police barricades and at least one police cruiser, and on to the sidewalk.
The driver continued down the street for several blocks, mowing down dozens of pedestrians.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (EXPLETIVE DELETED) oh, hell no. (EXPLETIVE DELETED), oh, hell no.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: Now that, in fact, was video from the shootout that ensued. Two officers were wounded in that, and the suspect was in fact killed. Investigators say 42-year-old Shamsud-Din Jabbar was born and raised in the United States and served in the army. They say he made recordings on the drive from Texas to Louisiana about joining ISIS and killing his family. Police say they found an ISIS flag and improvised explosive devices in Jabbar's truck, and investigators are looking into whether he had any accomplices.
U.S. President Joe Biden praised police for their swift response.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I directed my team to make sure every resource, every resource is made available to federal, state and local law enforcement to complete the investigation in New Orleans quickly and to make sure there is no remaining threat to the American people. And we will support the people of New Orleans as they begin the hard work of healing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: Now among the first victims identified as 37-year-old Reggie Hunter from Baton Rouge, Louisiana. His cousin says he leaves behind two children ages 11 and 1. He had messaged "Happy New Year" to his family just hours before the attack. Also killed 27-year-old Tyler Beck, originally from Lafayette, Louisiana. His sister says he was a former Princeton University football player who was visiting New Orleans for the holidays with a friend. Beck worked for a capital markets firm in New York.
We have more now on the investigation and the fallout on this attack from CNN's Omar Jimenez, who's in New Orleans.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Sudden terror on Bourbon Street.
KIMBERLY STRICKLIN, WITNESS: There were just bodies and the screams. You can't unthink about, you know, unhear that. It was chaos and very, very scary.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everything in the car it's hitting, it's getting thrown.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A vehicle ran through a crowd of people. There's multiple injuries, multiple casualties. They need you at Canal and Bourbon.
JIMENEZ: 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 15 people were killed, dozens others injured.
ANNE E. KIRKPATRICK, NEW ORLEANS POLICE SUPERINTENDENT: This is not just an act of terrorism. This is evil.
JIMENEZ: The suspect, identified as Shamsud-Din Jabbar, a 42-year-old man from Texas who previously served in the U.S. Military. He was allegedly driving a privately rented pickup truck from Turo, an Airbnb type rental site for cars.
ALETHEA DUNCAN, FBI ASSISTANT SPECIAL AGENT IN CHARGE: 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: Once the vehicle stopped, the driver reportedly opened fire on responding police officers.
[00:05:07]
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: Witnesses are asking questions about why the city's steel mechanical barricades weren't up prior to the attack.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There was police there at the entrance. A lot of police there, but the metal barricades were not up.
LATOYA CANTRELL, NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA MAYOR: Bollards were not up because they are near completion.
JIMENEZ: 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: And the Sugar Bowl for college football, scheduled to be held in New Orleans this evening, has been postponed.
JEFF HUNDLEY, CEO, SUGAR BOWL GAME: All agree that it's in the best interests of everybody and public safety that we postpone the game for 24 hours.
JIMENEZ: Omar Jimenez, CNN, New Orleans.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NEWTON: And we are following developments in Las Vegas as well, where a Tesla cybertruck exploded outside the Trump Hotel on Wednesday morning.
Here's the moment police suspect either fireworks or some type of gas tank went off in the bed of the vehicle. The FBI is working to determine whether it was an act of terrorism.
Veronica Miracle has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
VERONICA MIRACLE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Our John Miller is telling us he has spoken to multiple law enforcement officials who say that the driver of the cybertruck has a military background. Now law enforcement officials say they know the name of this driver who died in the explosion, but they are not going to be releasing the identity of that driver until they notify the next of kin.
We understand that this driver was in Las Vegas for about an hour driving around the strip before pulling up to Trump Tower before that explosion happened. And authorities say the driver rented the cybertruck in Colorado via the Turo app before driving down to Las Vegas. A video released by law enforcement shows explosives that were contained inside the truck, which included fireworks, gas tanks and camping fuel, and all of that was connected to a detonation system that was controlled by the driver.
And the sheriff pointed out, which is really incredible how the cybertruck actually contained the explosion. The way that it was built forced the explosion to go upwards instead of outwards, which meant that the glass from Trump Tower was not broken, and seven people nearby were injured, but with minor injuries. All of them are OK. They've all been released from the hospital.
The driver did die, and Las Vegas police believe that this was an isolated incident. They are not yet willing to say if this was in fact connected to what happened in New Orleans, but it is quite unusual that both the drivers in these incidents rented their cars from Turo. We do have a statement from Turo, and they said they're cooperating with these investigations, but they also said that neither of the drivers had criminal backgrounds, which would have flagged them as security threats.
Back to you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NEWTON: David Katz is a former special agent with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, now CEO of Global Security Group. And he joins me now from Chandler, Arizona.
Thanks for being with us as we continue to try and work through the details on two very disturbing situations in the United States this hour. Now, given what we've learned, if we talk about the New Orleans attack first, is it possible still that he may have acted alone? And I ask because officials have said that they believe he may have had accomplices, but evidence has been hard to come by so far.
DAVID KATZ, CEO, GLOBAL SECURITY GROUP: Well, it's certainly possible that he acted alone. Nothing in what he did would be impossible for a single motivated individual, especially one who has some military training, certainly. On the other hand, I think it's prudent that you assume the otherwise, that there was actors in concert, especially after what happened in Las Vegas.
I mean, this is not rocket science, where, you know, it's -- they use the same with both vehicles are rented, as you mentioned, with the same app and the incidents occur with relative close proximity in time. So the assumption, I think at least the working theory until proven otherwise is either they were working in concert or they were both radicalized to answer the call of jihad, which as law enforcement has put out recently as believers to foment attacks in the United States and Western countries over the New Year's Eve holiday.
NEWTON: Yes, it would be a notable coincidence. It can't be ruled out that it's a coincidence, but certainly notable, as you say.
I do want to ask you about the issue of accomplices, though, because there is this issue about whether or not you're actually radicalized online. And those were the people that were so-called helping you, or if you had material support. What does it look like to you so far?
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KATZ: Again, you know, there's nothing to suggest that in both attacks, you know, a single individual couldn't procure, couldn't rent the car, couldn't get the equipment needed, the firearms. And in the case of the first attack and the explosive with the elements of making the fortunately very effective homemade explosive device that occurred in the cybertruck.
So, is it possible someone did it, they acted alone? And yes, you can probably do that easily by yourself, but did they? That's the question. So there are many, many ways and many avenues that investigators are going to be able to look at. They're going to look at first communication. Everyone has a cell phone. Everyone has a computer. Unless these were destroyed.
Well, in any case, a lot of this stuff is going to be available online through providers. They can get some indication as to who, if anyone, he was in contact with prior to the incidents. Both individuals in fact. So they're going to be looking at that. They're going to look at cameras. They're going to look at the movements of these individuals over the last few months.
So I'm confident they'll be able to make some assessment as to whether they were working individually or in concert with others.
NEWTON: You know, at this hour, we still believe authorities are on location somewhere near Houston searching his home. What would that investigation look like? What do you -- what are they doing right now in terms of ascertain exactly if there's any evidence there that they can use in their investigation?
KATZ: Well, you know, I'm quite certain the search warrant application, included the ability to look at records, look at, basically look throughout the house, access any electronic devices. So they're going to look everywhere. They're going to look -- they'll look in the person's garage. Are they -- did he store ammo? Did he have a weapon? Did he have other weapons? Did he have a gun safe?
They'll look online. They'll look at his computer. You know, what was he researching lately? Was he researching -- did he pull up maps of Bourbon Street? Has he made trips to Bourbon Street recently? You know, there's so much material. If you think about what you would do if you were online or using your computer to plan out, if you plan a vacation, for example, how many, how many sites are you visiting? How much of a record would you have on your computer?
That's the kind of stuff that they're going to be looking at now. And I'm quite certain they already are.
NEWTON: And given the attack in New Orleans, do you believe it was a security failure on the part of police? They admit that the barriers that were supposed to be in place clearly were not positioned where they should be, because they were still being repaired for events that were upcoming in New Orleans.
KATZ: Yes, that dog won't hunt. If you look for an example, you know, I'm originally from New York City. What does the NYPD do to secure that parade route? I mean, they have the same ability to do it in New Orleans, get garbage trucks, get any sort of, you know, your highway department. You have large vehicles, not just a single patrol car that will block an exit, which in this case, they tried to do. And what did the suspect do? Just drove right around it.
And if you look at what is done in New York City, they used garbage trucks, for example, to build barriers that cannot be driven around or through. So they could have done that. And quite frankly, look, the further we get from an incident like this, the less of a concern it is. And, you know, it's -- I guess it's a failing of human nature. But we have to be vigilant 100 percent of the time. You know, any success on their part is a home run.
We have to be so much better than they do. We have to prepare every single time, without exception, without any sort of, you know, cutting corners. And unfortunately, I don't know what the decision making process was like in New Orleans, but they certainly could have done a better job. The idea is physical impediment makes something you can't drive around, you can't drive through.
You don't want to have just French -- like the French barriers or the wooden barricades or a single police car. That's a deterrent to the law-abiding. That is not a deterrent to a serious adversary.
NEWTON: Do you worry that vehicles now are being used as weapons of terror, that unfortunately, as far as the terrorist is concerned, he succeeded?
KATZ: Yes. I mean, look, I mean, think back, I don't know, was it 10 years ago now? And right before Halloween in New York City and it was a rental truck being used to run people over. And I mean, your previous report did a great job of going through the number of incidents in recent memory where trucks -- were vehicles were used. You know, if you think about it, even your car is a 5,000 pound weapon.
So, absolutely, you can use it to commit, to perpetrate incredible, incredibly damaging acts. And unfortunately you can't protect every place every time. But when you have a high profile event like a New Year's Eve celebration, that's I think -- I don't think it's too much to ask to completely secure the route, to make sure at least those events are protected against someone who's going to use a vehicle as a weapon. [00:15:06]
NEWTON: I'm sure it is something that many police forces, not just in the United States, but around the world, are taking a very close look at this hour.
David Katz, for us, I want to thank you for joining us.
KATZ: Pleasure.
NEWTON: More on the Las Vegas truck explosion coming up later this hour. But first, new details about the terror attack in New Orleans, what we know about the suspect in the New Year's Day attack. We'll have that next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NEWTON: An update now on the breaking news out of New Orleans. The death toll has now reached at least 15 after a truck plowed into a crowd of revelers celebrating the new year on Wednesday morning. Dozens of others were injured and a warning the video you are about to see is disturbing.
This video shows the scene just moments after the attack when the attacker was killed by police. The suspect has been identified as Shamsud-Din Jabbar, a U.S. citizen from Texas and an army veteran.
CNN's Evan Perez has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
EVAN PEREZ, CNN SENIOR JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: The FBI is working to determine whether anyone else was involved in the attack that killed at least 15 people early on New Year's Day on Bourbon Street in New Orleans. An army veteran from Texas maneuvered a rented pickup truck around a police car that was intended to block access to the street. The attack injured dozens of people, and the FBI is treating it as a terrorism investigation.
[00:20:05]
Investigators found an ISIS flag, as well as writings with the suspect Shamsud-Din Jabbar. This evidence, along with recordings he is believed to have made, recently indicated allegiance to ISIS according to investigators.
Authorities also detonated several suspected improvised explosives in the truck and nearby. Investigators spent the day at the large crime scene in the French Quarter, as well as working to conduct searches at other locations associated with the suspect. This includes a rental home nearby, where the suspect is believed to have spent the recent days before carrying out the attack, as well as another home in the Houston area, where the suspect is thought to have lived.
They've also spent the day talking to people who knew the suspect and so far haven't identified anyone who helped him or who knew of his plans to carry out the attack. The FBI is still continuing to ask the public for help, to share video or tips if they've seen the suspect in recent days and weeks.
Evan Perez, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NEWTON: Now, New Orleans officials say mechanical barricades to prevent vehicles from entering Bourbon Street were not functioning and were being repaired ahead of the Super Bowl that's going to take place in early February. Some witnesses say cars were able to drive into the area.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Of course I'm surprised, but I don't know why they're still letting cars go through Bourbon Street. Even last night, which I was there, there was still like at midnight, 1:00 in the morning, there are still cars driving by, even though there's people walking all over the street. You got to dodge cars. So I don't think they should let any vehicles at all. It should always be blocked off at night time because something like this could happen.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: Now, the street has been protected since 2017 with steel barriers that can be raised or lowered to block traffic. But one lawmaker says they may not have helped, even if they had been up. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. TROY CARTER (D-LA): There are metal bollards that come up out of the ground that are supposed to prevent any oncoming vehicles from driving into the crowd. We were told today at a briefing that apparently they were not working properly. Therefore, there were vehicles that were placed in the place where the knowledge would have been, which served as the blockade if you will.
The subject or suspect apparently went around the vehicle and jumped the sidewalk. The next question obviously be asked is why was the sidewalk not protected? There are a lot of unanswered questions as it relates to that, but one thing is for certain, as the governor said, with no uncertain terms, we will identify whatever the weakness was and fix it, making sure that the citizens and visitors that come to New Orleans are safe is paramount.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: Now, the FBI says law enforcement are searching a Houston location they believe is connected to the suspected New Orleans attacker.
CNN's Kyung Lah reports on what we know about the suspect.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) KYUNG LAH, CNN SENIOR INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT: The suspect behind the terror attack in New Orleans up until several years ago appeared to be quite normal. An army veteran who went to college and worked in real estate and IT had started to have some financial troubles. He posted a YouTube video, though, as recently as four years ago, where he described that he had been born in Texas, that he was trying to get this real estate company off the ground. He identified himself as a veteran.
We want to play you a short clip of this even though this video has been taken down because it gives you a window into the background of this suspect.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SHAMSUD-DIN JABBAR, SUSPECT: So I'm born and raised in Beaumont, Texas, and now live in Houston, and I've been here all my life, with the exception of traveling for the military, where I spent 10 years as a human resources specialist.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LAH: You're looking at a picture from the U.S. Army. It comes from a 2013 U.S. Army Facebook post that identified him as an army staff sergeant working as an information technology team chief for the 82nd Airborne Division's First Brigade Combat Team.
Looking online, he appeared to have very much a normal background. He went to college. He went to Georgia State University. The university confirms that he did graduate with a Bachelor's degree. He worked in real estate in Texas for four years and then things started to change. There are divorce records that show in 2012 from his first wife. She sued him to try to get child support.
And then in his second marriage, there was a filing that the suspect, the would-be suspect, would eventually file saying that he was tens of thousands of dollars in debt from his business, that he was at risk of foreclosure, and that he had credit card debt. And that's why he was petitioning the judge to try to back out of some of those payments.
Kyung Lah, CNN, Los Angeles.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
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NEWTON: Juliette Kayyem is a CNN senior national security analyst and former assistant secretary to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, and she joins us now from Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Juliette, as always, we look to you to try and parse exactly what is critical about this investigation at this hour. So how significant would it be if authorities actually confirm that the alleged attacker did not act alone? What does that mean for national security going forward? JULIETTE KAYYEM, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: It's a big variable.
And I think part of the confusion right now about sort of his status, and in fact, the city's status, is it safe to advance, is it safe to have, say, the Sugar Bowl tomorrow night, is what do we mean by his associates? And I think there was honestly some confusion earlier. Did it mean people who had planned with him, who had helped him put out IEDs or helped him, you know, manage and rent and do all the horrible things that he did?
Or was it people, say, on social media or others who may have known about the event but were not, you know, sort of, you know, aiding and abetting in the sense of making this more likely? And I think we still don't know the answer to this question. I believe in the last couple hours it is more likely that he is someone who got radicalized. There may have been people online or elsewhere. Maybe he met people abroad who were pushing him, but that he acted alone.
And that's why the city sort of is feeling more confident about saying, well, we can move forward, just don't come to this area that had been attacked. It's been a bit confusing over the last couple hours. That's to be understood. But that's a big differential. There were a bunch of people planning a major terrorist attack in a U.S. city. It would suggest that there was foreign or international coordination, and then the investigation would be much bigger.
NEWTON: Yes. And speaking of what the threat assessment could look like going forward, you know, March of last year, a branch of ISIS killed at least 144 people at a concert hall in Moscow. You know, at the time, Christopher Wray, the FBI director, you know, he told Congress, look, there is potential for a coordinated attack in the United States.
Do you believe that those warnings should have been taken more seriously at the time, in the sense that should there be an elevated threat level right now?
KAYYEM: Yes. And in some ways, we always -- we sort of always exist under it and we focus them on events like New Year's Eve for these high-profile events, or think about Christmas villages in Germany. I mean, in a lot of ways, the way we've adapted, rather than being on DEFCON 1 all the time, right? Always being a nervous and worried is we do put more effort, safety and security effort into these high profile mass events.
And that's what's surprising about this. And those of us who know New Orleans know that Mayor Landrieu several years back, the former mayor, had looked at what was happening in Europe, what had happened in Berlin, what had happened in France, and with these terrorist attacks using vehicles and had put up sort of more security on Bourbon Street, which is really exists, you know, for the party atmosphere. It's a residential area. But for those who have not been there, it's sort of where everyone goes to walk on the streets.
And there was a lot of security. There is a question now about whether some of that security was undermined or maybe minimized because of upgrades they were trying to do and whether replacements were not satisfactory enough for -- to stop something like this.
NEWTON: Yes, it is always sad in the sense that when you look at hindsight, everyone realizes, OK, you know, perhaps there was something else we could have done.
I do want to talk about what happened in Las Vegas, right? That cybertruck, the Tesla truck in front of the Trump hotel.
KAYYEM: Yes.
NEWTON: What stands out to you about that, I guess, an alleged attack? We still don't know exactly what it is. And if it's linked to the -- to what happened in New Orleans?
KAYYEM: I think given the timing, there will have to be an investigation about their linkages and any coincidences between the narratives of the perpetrators, U.S. citizens, military background, as well as the -- how they rented the vehicles that ended up being the sort of weapons of mass destruction. But I looked at that one, and I think the evidence, at least from Las Vegas, is suggesting, you know, you sort of, it's Elon Musk and Donald Trump. Two high-profile people now, controversial to many people who someone seemed to want to make a statement and harm others in that statement.
That's not legitimate. That's not a legitimate form of any kind of protest. And I think that's what we will find is that that ideological connection really is related to the Elon Musk-Donald Trump connection. Therefore the use of a cybertruck rather than -- than, say, something larger like an ISIS Connection.
[00:30:15]
But the Las Vegas police were pretty confident in trying to assure people they viewed this as a very isolated incident.
PAULA NEWTON, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: It is kind of chilling, though, to think about what we may face in the year to come. And I mean, one hopes that -- that it's not what we're facing.
But when you look at the threat assessment, especially considering that authorities in October have charged an Afghan national who was allegedly plotting a terrorist attack in support of ISIS for election day.
What does all of this tell you, when we put together the intelligence, combined with what have been two, you know, very heartbreaking events?
KAYYEM: Right. So, there's going to be the organized threat we -- that we've known and worried about from abroad. Terrorist organizations, organizations that are supported by foreign country enemies, either through physical means or cyber means, which can have a physical impact.
There's also going to be people who are -- who are radicalized by those elements, who -- who have a certain ideology that then becomes violent, right? And that -- that is something in which, you know, our intelligence agencies are on the watch out for. That's why it's important to share intelligence with other countries.
We then have a domestic threat. So, they're not mutually exclusive. We have a domestic threat in which people are utilizing violence as a part of our political narrative. You know, whether it's assassination attempts on Donald Trump, or it is -- it is right-wing violence. And all exist.
I say, you know, there's -- there's all of the above is the solution. One is getting politicians to lower the temperature about language. It is intelligence and law enforcement efforts to denigrate terrorist groups, but it also is communities coming forward.
In a lot of these instances, as I'm sure we will determine in these two instances today, there will be people who say he seemed to be acting differently. He was talking about doing something violent. Whatever we often find in these cases that we really are dependent on a community coming forward and disclosing their concerns about an individual.
NEWTON: And we certainly hope we learn more about this going forward to put people's minds at ease, because this is truly an attack on our way of life and our freedoms. And we can't -- we can't miss the point, no matter, you know, what the incident is.
Juliette -- Juliette Kayyem, thanks again. Appreciate it.
NEWTON: Thank you.
Now, CNN's local affiliates in New Orleans were on the scene for hours after the attack. Here's WDSU anchor/reporter Travers Mackel.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TRAVERS MACKEL, WDSU ANCHOR/REPORTER: I'm going to put somebody on the spot here.
This is Chris Granger. He's a professional photographer. I know, I know, I'm sorry. You're one of the best. Look, he really is. He's a gifted photographer.
You've covered a lot of things around the world. Do you ever remember something like this? You and I have both lived here a long time. You were here for Katrina. You've covered everything. I'm so sorry to put you on the spot, but I know you're here taking pictures to send to the world. Can you remember anything like this? I can't.
CHRIS GRANGER, PROFESSIONAL PHOTOGRAPHER: No, not at all. I've walked maybe 12,000 steps around the corner today alone. And this is -- I've seen a lot of sad faces. I met somebody who lost his friend. He's from Mississippi, and he knew the girl from there, and it really broke my heart. After years of covering crime and murder, this one really, really touched everybody. I'm just -- I'm at a loss for words. It's --
MACKEL: It's tough. And I know we've become desensitized to it sometimes, because you've covered crime scenes before.
But when you see the FBI in the heart of the French Quarter, knowing what this was, it just hits a little different. Is that fair to say?
GRANGER: Oh, yes. Yes. I mean, this hits home. And my phone's been blowing up all day with people from around the world trying to find out if we're OK and what's happening, and it makes me sad for the city, for the country, for all of us, that this kind of thing happens.
Just -- I, you know -- I don't know where we go from here. We've just got to clean up the scene and -- and try to get back on our feet.
MACKEL: Right. I agree, I agree. I'm so sorry to put you on the spot, too. I'll let you do your job now and get out of the way.
Also, Stephone (ph) Cage, our photojournalist who's behind the camera, is going to get some -- some video of you -- in for you. And this is obviously, you know, the most iconic building in our city, the Saint Louis Cathedral, something we all celebrate and cherish and love as an iconic landmark.
And then you have the crime scene tape right here on Bourbon Street, right in front of the Tropical Isle. There's FBI forensic units out here.
And the reason they're all here is because at about 6 a.m. This morning, a state police trooper discovered what he felt like was an unusual package. And we're told it may have even been an ice chest.
So, they sent out the NOPD special unit, and -- and we believe they detonated it because we heard. Or at least they did a -- a controlled detonation to make sure it was nothing that could have been more extreme.
[00:35:08]
And when I say they detonated it, I want to be very clear, because we keep saying that this wasn't, like, a reverberating boom where buildings shook. It sounded more like a firecracker.
We heard, you know, someone with the NOPD say, fire in the hole. And then there was a firecracker-type sound. That happened twice.
They now have a drone that the FBI is flying over the scene here right now. They have been out here gathering evidence, because we believe it is obviously part of their bigger investigation into what happened in the 100 block.
But as you just heard Chris Granger say, a lot of the people that we're talking about, look, we live here. We understand that sometimes New Orleans can be beautifully messy, the beauty. But we deal with crime issues, and we deal with things in the city that other cities don't.
But -- but this one is a little different. This is, you know -- the trauma of this one is -- is more intense, and the ripple effects are real. I know you've all been reporting that the Sugar Bowl is going to be postponed. And in the tourists that were here and the locals that were here,
we're going to start finding more out about the victims, and this really is a truly awful scene, an awful way to start 2025. But that is what it looks like here, right now.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NEWTON: And some more breaking news just into CNN. New York police say at least ten people, possibly more, have been injured in a drive-by shooting in a nightclub in the borough of Queens.
Now, police are searching for more information and video to identify those responsible. Witnesses say a gray Infiniti sedan opened fire from the street and may have been followed by a second vehicle.
We will continue to update this story as we get more details.
Now, we'll have more on the deadly terror attack in New Orleans straight ahead, including the security concerns as the city prepares to host several major events, drawing tens of thousands of visitors. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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NEWTON: We're following two major incidents in the U.S. right now.
First, investigators are working to determine whether a truck explosion outside a Trump hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada, was a terror attack. Seven people were injured in the blast, and the body of the driver was found inside the Tesla Cybertruck, along with gas tanks, fuel and a detonation system.
Now, the agency believes it was an isolated incident and, at this time, not connected to the deadly incident in New Orleans, where a driver rammed a truck into a crowd during New Year's celebrations.
At least 15 people were killed and dozens injured in that attack, which the FBI is investigating as an act of terrorism.
Now, the attack in New Orleans raises new questions about security as the city prepares to host hundreds of thousands of visitors just in the coming weeks for several large events.
CNN's Tom Foreman has that.
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TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Look, this truck was coming down Canal Street here, the widest main street in America. It turns in here, 3:30 in the morning at a time, the new year, the Sugar Bowl, all of this happening. Bourbon Street, end to end, typically is just packed with people.
This is where the -- the attacks seem to begin in the sense of people being hit. But really, the truck, if you look at the pictures, didn't seem to stop till about here.
If it had continued up into here, there would have been -- I can't imagine the count of people who would have died in that circumstance. It hit that large red cranes type device and stopped.
Nonetheless, this is one of the reasons that we need clarity on whether or not people can simply grieve this terrible event and look for answers, or whether they need to be concerned about somebody else being out there.
Because look at all the other areas so close by: Jackson Square, Cafe du Monde, right down here. So many people have visited. It's right up in here. So many people have visited that. That's merely blocks away. Preservation Hall, a great tourist attraction. Pat O'Brien's bar. So many young people go to there.
Canal Street over here, we mentioned. Huge, a lot of Mardi Gras parades there. They had a parade for the Sugar Bowl in this area just before this all happened.
And of course, the Superdome right over here. You could walk from here all the way over here to Jackson Square in 30 minutes, easily, in a very relaxed fashion.
And this is a town that has lots and lots of people around it, and they've taken security seriously. They've been aware of threats. There are very serious questions now as to what maybe wasn't done right here.
First of all, we have the Sugar Bowl. That's happening right now, 75,000 people may be inside the Superdome, maybe more. Watch parties all over town.
Mardi Gras technically starts next Monday with the first parade. That will go on for about two months. About a million people will come to town for that. Jazz fest will get a half million or more in town. That's coming up a little bit later this spring. The Super Bowl in just a little over a month.
These are huge events, all of which, if there is a threat out there, are all in a position of having to be concerned about it. And in fact, the NFL put out a tweet saying, "Deeply saddened by the news of this devastating event in New Orleans. Thoughts are with the victims, the community and all those involved."
And the NFL and the local host committee have been working collaboratively with local, state and federal agencies the past two years to develop a comprehensive security plan. They will go through with that plan.
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NEWTON: Now, as Tom mentioned, there are more events, significant events to come in New Orleans, and officials are now looking at steps to keep locals and tourists safe.
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HELENA MORENO, NEW ORLEANS CITY COUNCIL PRESIDENT: It's been a tremendously tragic day in the city of New Orleans, and now we are working, of course, with our state and federal partners to make sure that the city of New Orleans is secure and, obviously, doing everything possible to support our federal partners as they go after anyone else who may potentially have been involved in this.
No doubt in my mind that they deserve the justice that is coming their way for, you know, what happened overnight.
Just to tell you about just how terrible this has been, this afternoon, you know, I unfortunately was told about some individuals who were missing who, unfortunately, will not be coming home. And their families have been waiting at University Medical Center for information as to why they weren't at any of our hospitals. And now, unfortunately, they have that tragic news as to why.
So, you know, moving forward now, as you can imagine, we are looking at our Sugar Bowl, which will take place tomorrow, and looking at all different types of security measures that are needed to make sure that anyone going to the Sugar Bowl is going to be safe and that it will be a safe event.
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NEWTON: CNN law enforcement contributor Steve Moore is a retired FBI supervisory agent, special agent, and he is with us from Los Angeles.
Good to have you with us, especially at this hour.
Given that law enforcement officials are searching a home in Houston, which could be connected to the suspected New Orleans attacker, can you give us some insight into how that search might be unfolding right now?
STEVE MOORE, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT CONTRIBUTOR: Well, the -- you're going to be looking at so many things. You know, a search warrant is usually limited to, say, if you're looking for a car, you can't search in somebody's chest of drawers, you know, because it couldn't be in there.
The problem with this is they're searching for everything, right down to electronic files. In fact, those might be the most important things.
So, this is going to be a comprehensive search. I mean, one end of the house to another. And it's going to be more than just a visual search and hands-on. They're going to be doing electronic searches, and they're going to try and find any electronics, any components, possibly of the -- of the device that was in the vehicle or other devices that have been talked about.
They're going to be looking for anything that could possibly be linked to this attack.
NEWTON: You know, the Louisiana attorney general says that an Airbnb was likely used to assemble the explosives, right, because it wasn't just that he used the truck, but he also had improvised explosive devices with him.
What does this tell you about the suspect, his motivations, how well he would have tried to execute this type of an attack?
MOORE: He -- he was in -- in many ways, trying to go through what -- what is called in the military or in the federal government OPSEC, operational security.
He was trying to keep everything that he was doing in support of this attack away from his own home, away from things that would tip people off, that he was going off the rails.
I am also very curious as to why he felt the need to do this. Did he not believe that he could compile all the equipment and assemble them in his own home? It's very curious to me as -- to me how he did this.
NEWTON: The other question still top of mind for everyone, is whether or not he had accomplices. It's been a confusing day. There is still no evidence that he did have accomplices.
And yet, officials in New Orleans and beyond are definitely not ruling that out. In fact, they think it's likely that he did have accomplices.
Do you think this could be more of an inspirational thing, or the fact that he may have had material support?
MOORE: I would think it would -- what they're talking about, at least from my watching of the press conference, is they're saying that he had people working with him on this, which would be so unusual.
Usually when we find these types of things, it's an individual who is radicalized. And it's really hard to find somebody that you can come up to and say, hey, you want to come with me and kill a bunch of people? You know, in the name of Allah.
You know, because most of the time those people turn you in. So, it's rare that you find somebody who has accomplices like this. We would call that a cell.
So, I want to see the evidence that there were people -- accomplices helping him. Or whether they were just saying stuff a little earlier than they needed to in the investigation.
NEWTON: Yes, certainly. So many questions, especially for the people of New Orleans, who understand all too well how that would -- an actual terror cell operating in their city, how that would escalate things, as compared to having the one attacker.
I'm interested to hear from you. Do you believe the Sugar Bowl should go ahead in the coming hours? MOORE: Yes, I do, because, the Sugar Bowl will likely have much better
security than simply Bourbon Street did.
There was kind of a complacent attitude, in my mind, on protecting the people in -- on Bourbon Street. You can't tell me that you -- the bollards that you have up there or the police cars that you have parked there are not there to prevent a vehicle being used to hit pedestrians. So, why would you not block this sidewalk?
And when you go into the -- the game and the facility and the dome there, there is going to be a much more -- much more thought-out, much more planned, much more practiced security procedure that goes -- that has been going on for -- for years at these types of games. And you're going to have magnetometers, things like this.
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I think it's safe to go on. And I think it's important not to let terrorists tell us that we can't go on with life.
NEWTON: Yes, it will be important symbolically. But of course, you know, the authorities have to have every confidence that it can be safe.
Steve Moore, appreciate you. Thanks so much.
MOORE: Thank you.
NEWTON: Now, as we were just talking about, tens of thousands of college football fans have gathered in New Orleans for the quarterfinal football playoff game between Notre Dame and Georgia, which, as we were saying, was postponed following the deadly terror attack on Wednesday.
CNN's Andy Scholes picks up that story.
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ANDY SCHOLES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, officials in New Orleans say they have moved the Sugar Bowl between Georgia and Notre Dame to Thursday out of an abundance of caution due to the terrorist attack early Wednesday morning.
The superintendent of New Orleans police says they will have heightened security in the area, and bomb dogs will continue to sweep the Superdome and the exterior throughout the game.
Now, officials insist it will be safe to play the game. Here is Sugar Bowl CEO Jeff Hundley on the decision to postpone.
JEFF HUNDLEY, CEO, SUGAR BOWL: 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. SEN. JOHN KENNEDY, (R-LA): I think the mayor and the governor are very
wise to postpone this ball game. There's just too much stuff we don't know. And it's -- it's just not worth it.
SCHOLES: Now, the Super Bowl is set to be played in New Orleans on February 9th.
The NFL, they released a statement on Wednesday, saying that they were deeply saddened by what happened and added, "The NFL and the 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."
Now, it will be interesting to see what Super Bowl week in New Orleans is like, because just hours ago, you know, the air in New Orleans, it was filled with joy and anticipation for the Sugar Bowl. And now it's tragedy, uncertainty, and the overriding issue of safety hovering over the city.
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NEWTON: Thanks to Andy Scholes there.
Now, the attacker used a truck as a weapon against people on a crowded street that's very popular with tourists in New Orleans.
As CNN's Brian Todd reports, using vehicles in terror attacks has become more common in recent years. A warning: some of the video you're about to see is disturbing.
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BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): One witness to the New Orleans attack says she can't unhear the screams of the victims.
KIMBERLY STRICKLIN, WITNESSED NEW ORLEANS ATTACK: I remember the screeching and him gunning the car and the impact and the screams. Like I said, the screams of those girls.
I mean, I don't know that I'll be able to forget that.
TODD (voice-over): The kind of horror that many cities have experienced in recent years when attackers turned vehicles into weapons.
Just a few days before this Christmas, a car slams into a Christmas market in Magdeburg, Germany, killing at least five people, injuring more than 200.
The suspect, a doctor originally from Saudi Arabia, who'd expressed anti-Muslim far-right views.
Like Magdeburg and New Orleans, other cities have experienced horrific vehicle attacks during holidays. November 2021, a suspect with a long criminal history drives an SUV
through the annual Christmas parade in Waukesha, Wisconsin, killing six, injuring more than 60.
Berlin, December 2016, a tractor trailer rams into a crowd at a bustling Christmas market, killing at least 12 people, injuring dozens of others. The suspect, a rejected asylum seeker, was later killed in a shootout with police in Italy.
And the deadliest vehicle attack ever. July 14th, 2016 Bastille Day in Nice, France. A Tunisian-born French resident drives a 20-ton truck nearly a mile through a crowded seaside promenade. Eighty-six people killed, more than 200 others wounded. ISIS claimed responsibility.
Why do these vehicle attacks often seem more deadly than other tactics?
PETER BERGEN, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: A vehicle attack doesn't require any special training. You just rent a vehicle, buy a vehicle, and use it as a weapon.
Secondly, just like school shooters look at Columbine or other famous school shootings and kind of obsess about them, and terrorists examine other terrorists, and they say, well, what worked? Clearly, vehicle rammings work.
TODD (voice-over): October 2017, an Islamic extremist from Uzbekistan jumps a curb in a rental truck in Manhattan, drives down a bicycle path along the West Side Highway and kills eight people.
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Authorities found a note near the truck, claiming the attack was in the name of ISIS.
A couple of months earlier, a domestic extremist, a white nationalist, slammed his vehicle into a crowd of counter-protesters at the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, killing one woman and injuring almost 20 others.
Analyst Peter Bergen says vehicle attacks, with their bloodcurdling optics, have a distinct psychological impact.
BERGEN: Certainly, there is a short-term effect where it terrorizes people. People are worried about going out in places where there are a lot of people gathered.
TODD: Security analysts say one somewhat common characteristic of these vehicle attacks is that many of them took place in cities where tourism is a key part of the local economy.
One official with the New Orleans Tourism Association says it's too early to tell what effect this attack will have on tourism in that city, which was still trying to recover from tourism declines stemming from the COVID pandemic and even from Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.
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NEWTON: And I want to thank you for watching CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Paula Newton. Our coverage of the New Orleans attack will continue after a quick break.
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