The Daily Populous Friday January 3rd, 2025 morning edition
Authored by theguardian.com and submitted by yourlittlebirdie

The person who died when a Tesla Cybertruck packed with explosives burst into flames outside the hotel in Las Vegas part-owned by Donald Trump was a highly decorated US army Green Beret who was deployed twice to Afghanistan, officials have said.

The driver and lone occupant of the electric-powered Tesla Cybertruck that caught fire and exploded has been identified as Matthew Livelsberger, from Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Livelsberger, 37, died, while seven bystanders were wounded. Livelsberger was first identified in media reports. On Thursday afternoon the FBI said it believed the suspect was Livelsberger – his military ID was found in the vehicle, and officials said tattoos gave a strong indication the body was his – and was waiting for DNA tests to confirm this.

Investigators discovered the vehicle was packed with fireworks-style mortars, camping fuel and gas canisters.

Clark county sheriff Kevin McMahill said investigators had found that Livelsberger had two legally owned firearms with him, and is believed to have shot himself before detonation. The body was burned beyond recognition, officials added.

The explosion caused minor injuries to seven people but virtually no damage to the Tump hotel. McMahill said Livelsberger likely planned a more damaging attack but the steel-sided vehicle absorbed much of the force from the crudely built explosive.

Damage from the blast was mostly limited to the interior of the truck because the explosion “vented out and up” and did not hit the hotel doors just a few feet away, the sheriff said.

“The level of sophistication is not what we would expect from an individual with this type of military experience,” said Kenny Cooper, a special agent in charge for the the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

The explosion occurred early on Wednesday morning, just hours after a mass killing in New Orleans in which a military veteran rammed a truck into a crowd.

Law-enforcement sources confirmed to local news outlets that the electric vehicle was rented from Turo, the vehicle-sharing service that was also used to rent the truck in the New Orleans attack.

That prompted a day of questions, including from Joe Biden, Tesla owner Elon Musk and investigators about possible connections between the two incidents, including reports from news station Denver 7 that Livelsberger and the suspect in the New Orleans attack had served at the same army base at one point.

An unnamed official told AP that both had spent time at the sprawling North Carolina base of Fort Liberty, formerly known as Fort Bragg, which is home to army special forces command. However, the official added that their time there did not overlap.

3:26 Driver of exploding Cybertruck in Las Vegas identified as US army soldier – video

“At this point there is no definitive link between the attack here in New Orleans and the one in Las Vegas,” FBI deputy assistant director Christopher Raia told a news conference on Thursday.

The US army said Livelsberger was an active-duty soldier from 2006 to 2011, before transferring to the national guard and then the army reserves. He rejoined the army in 2012 and was a special operations soldier.

US special operations command confirmed that Livelsberger was assigned to the command and on leave at the time of his death.

A law enforcement official told the Associated Press that investigators learned through interviews that Livelsberger may have got into a fight with his wife about relationship issues shortly before he rented the Tesla and bought the guns. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the investigation.

He served in the Green Berets, highly trained special forces who work to counter-terrorism abroad and train US partners, the army said in a statement. He had been deployed twice to Afghanistan and also served in Ukraine, Tajikistan, Georgia and DR Congo, the army said. He was awarded two Bronze Stars, including one with a valor device for courage under fire, a combat infantry badge, and an army commendation medal with valor.

Livelsberger’smost recent military role was listed as a remote and autonomous systems manager, which he had been in for just three months.

The FBI is conducting operations and searches in Colorado Springs in relation to the Cybertruck explosion, sources told ABC News, with the assistance of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). Investigators are following leads in at least four states and overseas, sources said.

Colorado Springs addresses connected to Livelsberger were staked out and later raided by FBI agents.

McMahill said investigators were able to track the truck’s journey from Colorado to Las Vegas as the driver stopped at charging stations along the route, and that the truck was in front of the hotel for 15 to 20 seconds before it exploded.

The sheriff said Musk helped the investigation by having the truck unlocked after it auto-locked in the blast, and by giving investigators video of the suspect at charging stations along its 800-mile route.

McMahill also addressed the political questions that hang over the Las Vegas incident. “It’s a Tesla truck. And we know that Elon Musk is working with President-Elect Trump. And it’s the Trump Tower. So there’s obviously things to be concerned about there,” he said.

A Turo spokesperson said in a statement: “We are actively partnering with law enforcement authorities as they investigate both incidents. 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.”

seriousbusinesslady on January 2nd, 2025 at 15:44 UTC »

seems like he enlisted pretty much right out of high school/just after turning 18, if his reported age and enlistment date is correct; and spent his entire adult life in the military. Then blew himself up for...reasons. Bleak.

xXDelta33Xx on January 2nd, 2025 at 15:10 UTC »

So it was a suicide bombing? This is such a strange incident…

t0matit0 on January 2nd, 2025 at 15:02 UTC »

So Vegas and NOLA both army vets? Yikes