The man allegedly had an Islamic State flag and the truck used in the attack was rented from a website where people put their own vehicles up for rent.
Authorities have identified the person responsible for the hit-and-run that killed at least 10 people in New Orleans this Wednesday as Shamsud Din Jabbar, 42, reported several North American media citing police sources.
The information was released privately by local newspaper The Times Picayune and NBC News television.
According to CNN International, which cites two sources familiar with the investigation, the suspect was a North American citizen.
Also according to CNN, the man was carrying an Islamic State flag at the time of the incident. One of the sources also said that several suspected explosive devices were found in a refrigerator in the van used in the attack.
The truck used in the attack was registered to the car rental website Turo, the vehicle’s owner told CNN in a text message. Two federal law enforcement officials also told CNN that the truck did not belong to the suspect. One of the sources added that it was rented on a website that owners use to rent their own cars.
The vehicle, a white Ford F-150 Lightning electric truck, is registered to a Houston man who worked for the car dealership where the vehicle was sold, according to public records based on the vehicle’s license plate. The man told CNN that the vehicle was registered on Turo, a website that allows owners to rent their vehicles to other people.
Authorities have not released additional information about the suspect, who died at the scene.
This Wednesday morning (around 03:00 local time), a in the southern United States. At least ten people died and more than 30 were injured.
The FBI is investigating this attack “as a possible act of terrorism.”
“The FBI is the lead investigative agency and we are working with our partners to investigate this as an act of terrorism,” the official source said.
In the early hours of the morning, in a brief press conference, the mayor of New Orleans, LaToya Cantrell, already considered it a “terrorist attack”.
The attack took place during New Year’s celebrations and when the city was also packed with people for the Sugar Bowl, a college football game that takes place today with the presence of thousands of people.
Police Commissioner Anne Kirkpatrick told the press that the attack was intentional and that the driver was “strongly determined to cause carnage”. He also stated that authorities are working to ensure the safety of the Sugar Bowl.
US media cited several witnesses who said a truck drove at high speed into the crowd, with the driver getting out and starting to fire a gun and police returning fire.
Information cited by news agencies states that two police officers were shot and injured.
