Authorities on Friday found firework mortars and camp fuel canisters stuffed in the back of the Tesla Cybertruck that exploded outside Donald Trump‘s Las Vegas hotel.
One person died while seven others were injured after a Tesla Cybertruck caught fire and exploded sparking an intense investigation as a possible act of terrorism.
What we know so far
Links with New Orleans attack
Police department Sheriff Kevin McMahill said authorities know who rented the truck with the Turo app in Colorado, but are not releasing the name until investigators determine if it is the same person who died.
“Our number one goal is to ensure that we have the proper identification of the subject involved in this incident,” said Jeremy Schwartz, acting special agent in charge for the FBI’s Las Vegas office.
“Following that, our second objective is to determine whether this was an act of terrorism or not,” he added
‘Explosion unrelated to vehicle,’ says Musk
Tesla founder Elon Musk said that the explosion was unrelated to the vehicle itself and said that the vehicle’s telemetry was positive at the time of explosion.
Taking to X, Musk said, “We have now confirmed that the explosion was caused by very large fireworks and/or a bomb carried in the bed of the rented Cybertruck and is unrelated to the vehicle itself.”
“All vehicle telemetry was positive at the time of the explosion,” he added.
Musk said in an earlier post on the platform that his entire senior term was investigating the explosion, adding, “We’ve never seen anything like this.”
Musk has recently become a member of Trump’s inner circle and attended a New Year’s Eve party at the Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida that was not attended by the president elect.
“This is a Tesla truck, and we know that Elon Musk is working with President-elect Trump, and it’s the Trump Tower,” McMahill said when reporters asked about possible political connections. “So there’s obviously things to be concerned about and it’s something we continue to look at.”
‘Tracking the explosion, says Biden
The vehicles used in both incidents were rented from a car rental site, ‘Turo’, prompting authorities to look for links between the two events.
“We’re tracking the explosion of a Cybertruck outside the Trump Hotel in Las Vegas. Law enforcement and the intelligence community are investigating this as well, including whether there’s any possible connection with the attack in New Orleans,” Joe Biden said.
Biden assured that every resource is being utilized to ensure there is no threat to the American people.
“I directed my team to make sure 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,” he said.
Turo working with authorities
In a statement, Turo said it was working with authorities.
“We do not believe that either renter involved in the Las Vegas and New Orleans attacks had a criminal background that would have identified them as a security threat,” the statement said.
The 64-story hotel is just off the Las Vegas Strip and across the street from the Fashion Show Las Vegas shopping mall.
Eric Trump, a son of the president-elect and executive vice president of the Trump Organization, posted about the fire on the social media platform X. He praised the fire department and local law enforcement “for their swift response and professionalism.”
