2025  — Jan 1, truck flying ISIS flag runs through Bourbon St. crowd, New Orleans, LA-14

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Compiled by Wayne Blanchard; last edit 1-4-2025 for upload to: http://www.usdeadlyevents.com/

–14  CBS News. “New Orleans attacker posted videos declaring support for ISIS…” 1-3-2025.

–14  CBS News. “Victims of Bourbon Street attack in New Orleans include…” 1-4-2025.

–14  CNN. “New Orleans attacker discussed plans to kill his family and join ISIS…” 1-3-2025.

 Narrative Information

Jan 2, CNN: “In a series of videos, the man responsible for the deadly New Year’s attack in New Orleans discussed planning to kill his family and having dreams that helped inspire him to join ISIS, according to multiple officials briefed on the investigation.

“Shamsud-Din Jabbar, 42, who drove a pickup truck into a crowd of revelers on Bourbon Street [at approximately 3:15 a.m. CT], killing 14 people and injuring dozens more, posted five videos on Facebook in the hours and minutes leading up to the attack, Christopher Raia, the deputy assistant director of the FBI’s Counterterrorism Division, said at a news conference Thursday.

 

“Jabbar, a Texas-born US citizen and Army veteran who served in Afghanistan, made reference in the videos to his divorce and how he had at first planned to gather his family for a ‘celebration’ with the intention of killing them, two officials who had been briefed on the recordings said.

 

“But Jabbar said in the videos he changed his plans because he wanted news headlines to focus on the ‘war between the believers and the disbelievers,’ Raia said. Jabbar stated he had joined ISIS before this summer, Raia added….

 

“Jabbar also planted two improvised explosive devices in the hours before the attack, which took place about 3:15 a.m.

 

“Jabbar was killed while exchanging fire with police after ramming the truck through the crowd in the early hours of New Year’s Day. He had an ISIS flag in the truck he drove, according to local and federal authorities….

 

“…his brother Abdur Jabbar, 24, and his father, Rahim Jabbar, 65, told CNN they couldn’t reconcile the attack with the kind, soft-spoken person they knew. ‘He was very well-tempered, slow to anger,’ Abdur said in an interview in their home in Beaumont. ‘That’s why it was so unbelievable that he would be capable of something like this.’ Abdur, who spoke with his older brother almost daily over the last year and half, said he thought there must have been a mistake when a relative first told him Jabbar had been identified as the suspect. But then he saw his brother’s face plastered on the news.

 

“The brothers were raised Muslim and regularly attended a mosque on Friday nights while growing up, but Jabbar never spoke about ISIS or showed any signs of radicalization, Abdur said….

 

“Jabbar served in the Army for more than a decade, an Army spokesperson told CNN. He served as a human resource specialist and information technology specialist on active duty between March 2007 and January 2015, and deployed to Afghanistan once from February 2009 to January 2010, the spokesperson said. After leaving active duty in January 2015, Jabbar served in the Army Reserve until July 2020, when he left service as a staff sergeant….

 

“Jabbar had divorced twice, court documents show. His first wife sued him in 2012 over child support soon after he filed for divorce, and the court ordered him to pay amounts that increased over the years as his income grew. The case was dismissed in 2022.

 

“In 2020, a Texas judge granted Jabbar’s second wife a restraining order against him during their divorce case. The order mandated Jabbar to refrain from threats, physical harm, or other stipulated behavior against his ex-wife and either of their children. It required her to avoid the same behavior. In a court filing, Jabbar’s ex-wife stated the marriage had become ‘insupportable because of discord or a conflict of personalities.’

 

“Jabbar had previously had several run-ins with the law. Harris County court records also show that he pleaded guilty to misdemeanor theft of between $50 and $500 in December 2002, and served nine months of ‘community supervision.’

 

“In 2015, he pleaded guilty to charges related to driving under the influence while serving at Fort Bragg, a North Carolina military base, now known as Fort Liberty, according to court records. The documents revealed Jabbar was under the influence of an impairing substance in November 2014 and recorded a blood alcohol level over the legal limit. They also showed that he was driving with ‘an open container of alcoholic beverage after he consumed alcohol.’ Jabbar was charged with Level 5 DWI –– the least severe level of the offense in North Carolina. According to the documents, he had his driver’s license suspended, was placed on probation for 12 months, fined $200 and complied with 24 hours of community service.

 

“In recent years, Jabbar appears to have struggled with his finances. In a January 2022 email filed as part of his divorce case, he wrote that he could not afford a mortgage payment on his house, which he said was more than $27,000 past due and ‘in danger of foreclosure’ if his divorce settlement was further delayed.

 

“Jabbar rented the truck he used in the New Year’s attack, a Ford F-150 Lightning electric truck, on the car rental website Turo, which lets owners rent their vehicles to other people. The truck’s owner confirmed to CNN in a text message that it was rented on Turo. Jabbar picked up the truck on December 30 before driving from Houston to New Orleans the following day, Raia said. Mumtaz Bashir, a neighbor of Jabbar’s in Houston, told CNN he saw Jabbar load up the truck on the morning of December 31, and that Jabbar told him he was moving to New Orleans for a new job….” (CNN. “New Orleans attacker discussed plans to kill his family and join ISIS in chilling recordings.” 1-3-2025.)

 

Jan 3, CBS News: “The investigation into the truck attack on New Orleans’ Bourbon Street continued Thursday after a driver plowed into a crowd of New Year’s Day revelers, killing at least 14 people and injuring dozens more. The attacker posted videos declaring his support for ISIS shortly before the deadly rampage, the FBI said Thursday. 

 

“The driver of the truck, who was shot and killed by police moments after he drove into the crowd, was identified as Shamsud-Din Jabbar, a 42-year-old U.S.-born citizen from Texas. He had previously served in the U.S. military, including an 11-month deployment to Afghanistan, according to an Army spokesperson. He was discharged in 2015 and worked in real estate in recent years. His most recent address was in Houston. 

 

“The FBI initially said that 15 people, excluding the driver, died in the attack. The number was revised by the New Orleans coroner’s office on Thursday to say that the figure included the attacker….” (CBS News. “New Orleans attacker posted videos declaring support for ISIS shortly before rampage, FBI says.” 1-3-2025.)

 

Jan 4, CBS News: “….The names of 13 of the 14 victims were publicly released this week by the Orleans Parish Coroner’s Office. The identified victims are:

  • Kareem Badawi, 23, of Baton Rouge, Louisiana 
  • Martin Bech, 27, of New York City New York
  • Andrew Dauphin, 26, of Montgomery, Alabama
  • Nikyra Dedeaux, 18, of Gulfport, Mississippi
  • William DiMaio, 25, of Holmdel, New Jersey
  • Hubert Gauthreaux, 21, of Gretna, Louisiana
  • Terrence Kennedy, 63, of New Orleans, Louisiana
  • Reggie Hunter, 37, of Prairieville, Louisiana
  • Nicole Perez, 27, of Metairie, Louisiana
  • Brandon Taylor, 43, of Harvey, Louisiana
  • Matthew Tenedorio, 25, of Picayune, Mississippi
  • Elliot Wilkinson, 40, of Slidell, Louisiana
  • Edward Pettifer, 31, of London

“The name of the other victim, a Black female, remains unknown, and efforts to identify her are “ongoing,” the coroner’s office said. …” (CBS News. “Victims of Bourbon Street attack in New Orleans include former Princeton football star, aspiring nurse, loving dad.” 1-4-2025.)

 

Sources

 

CBS News. “New Orleans attacker posted videos declaring support for ISIS shortly before rampage, FBI says.” 1-3-2025. Accessed 1-4-2025 at:

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/new-orleans-truck-attack-motive-possible-accomplices/

 

CBS News (Cara Tabachnick, Tucker Reals). “Victims of Bourbon Street attack in New Orleans include former Princeton football star, aspiring nurse, loving dad.” 1-4-2025. Accessed 1-4-2025 at: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/new-orleans-deadly-attack-new-years-victims/

 

CNN. “New Orleans attacker discussed plans to kill his family and join ISIS in chilling recordings.” 1-2-2025. Accessed 1-3-2025 at:

https://www.cnn.com/2025/01/01/us/shamsud-din-jabbar-suspect-new-orleans-attack/index.html

 

CNN (Rebekah Riess, Andy Rose, Deva Lee). “The latest on the deadly New Orleans attack.” 1-3-2025. Accessed 1-3-2025 at:

https://www.cnn.com/us/live-news/new-orleans-truck-attack-01-03-25-hnk/index.html