“In the weeks leading up to the holidays, federal law enforcement and intelligence agencies had warned police around the country that low-tech vehicle-ramming was a key area of concern and that they needed to prepare,” ABC news reports.
And yet, early on New Year’s Day, at least 15 people were killed (14 people on Bourbon Street plus the suspect) and dozens more injured when Shamsud-Din Jabbar, 42, sped his pickup truck down Bourbon Street in New Orleans.
Jabbar, a U.S.-born citizen and military veteran from Texas, was killed by police when he opened fire on them after crashing the Ford F150 truck, which he rented in Houston on Dec. 30. But after the tragedy -- which prompted authorities to postpone the annual Sugar Bowl at the Superdome -- still included very present concerns, including a search for bombs left behind and for possible accomplices. Then, at a press conference on Thursday morning, FBI investigators said that they were "very confident" that Jabbar acted alone and that he was motivated by a strong belief in ISIS. "He was 100% inspired by ISIS," said Christopher Wray of the FBI.
On Dec. 6, the FBI, Department of Homeland Security and National Counterterrorism Center issued a joint intel bulletin warning law enforcement about the ongoing serious threat posed by lone offenders during the winter holiday season. Jabbar had posted video on YouTube hailing ISIS.
Noting that threat actors have "plotted and conducted attacks against holiday targets" in previous years, the bulletin warned that likely targets included public places with "perceived lower levels of security" holding large gatherings or holiday events, and advised governments and law enforcement to "remain vigilant of these threats."
"Lone offenders have historically used simple tactics, such as edged weapons, firearms, or vehicle ramming, due to their ease of access, ability to inflict mass casualties, and lack of required training," the bulletin stated.
In a Dec. 9 assessment for the Times Square New Year's Eve celebration, federal and local agencies wrote that they "remain concerned about the use of vehicle ramming against high-profile outdoor events."
"Vehicle ramming has become a recurring tactic employed by threat actors in the West, marked by a continued interest by (terrorists, extremists) and lone offenders in targeting crowded pedestrian areas," they wrote.
And in a Dec. 27 New Year’s Eve advisory issued in advance of the annual Las Vegas celebrations, officials noted: "Intentional mass-casualty incidents involving motor vehicles as weapons represent a growing trend in Western countries. This method has resulted in the highest casualty rates per incident within the fields of (intentional mass-casualty incidents)."
A motive in the New Orleans incident remains under investigation. New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell described it as a "terrorist attack." The FBI, which is leading the probe, said it is being investigated as an act of terror. Weapons and potential improvised explosive devices (IEDs) were located in the suspect's vehicle, along with a remote detonator.
Other potential IEDs were located and detonated by a police bomb squad in the city's French Quarter, according to the FBI. As of Wednesday afternoon, two IEDs had been found and rendered safe, the FBI said.
The suspect is not believed to be "solely responsible" for the attack, the FBI noted. It said it is pursuing leads to identify any of his associates.
Investigators are working to determine whether the suspect had any affiliation with terrorist organizations after an ISIS flag was found tied to the truck's trailer hitch, the FBI said.
Bollards to block off Bourbon Street were not in place on Wednesday morning. They had been installed several years ago but did not work well, often getting stuck in place, and were in the process of being replaced ahead of New Orleans hosting the Super Bowl on Feb. 9, officials said.
The New Orleans Police Department had a parked vehicle blocking the top of Bourbon Street at Canal Street, but the suspect drove onto the sidewalk and around it – straight into a crowd of people.
"We did indeed have a plan. But the terrorist defeated it," New Orleans Police Chief Anne Kirkpatrick told reporters at a press briefing Wednesday.
Comments