Suspicions that the Bourbon Street attacker did not act alone appear to have been confirmed after an intelligence bulletin was leaked to the Associated Press.
As RedState reported, Shamsud Din Jabbar drove a truck through a crowd of people celebrating New Year’s Eve in New Orleans, leaving at least 15 people dead and many more injured. The assailant had an ISIS flag in the truck.
SEE: Attacker in Bourbon Street Attack Identified, and the FBI Clearly Misled the Public
While law enforcement, including the FBI, indicated at a second press conference on Wednesday that they felt Jabbar hadn’t acted alone, they didn’t offer any details. Shortly after, though, a leaked intelligence bulletin provided something more concrete.
Intel Bulletin on terror attack: “Pipe bombs were also found in the vehicle… The devices…were wired for remote detonation…and a corresponding remote control was discovered inside the vehicle. … Surveillance footage captured three men & a woman placing one of multiple IEDs.” pic.twitter.com/TUpD9U78xU
— Jerry Dunleavy IV 🇺🇸 (@JerryDunleavy) January 1, 2025
Guns and pipe bombs were found in the suspect’s vehicle, according to a Louisiana State Police intelligence bulletin obtained by The Associated Press.
The FBI said other potential explosive devices were also located in the French Quarter. And according to the intelligence bulletin, surveillance footage showed three men and a woman placing one of multiple improvised explosive devices.
While the truck itself contained IEDs, it had also been reported that others were spread around the French Quarter. That includes at least two devices found near the Cathedral located in Jackson Square.
At 6 am in New Orleans officers found an explosive device near the Cathedral in the French Quarter. They discovered two devices and safety detonated both. Thank God. pic.twitter.com/aG7HTCmNgD
— Raymond Arroyo (@RaymondArroyo) January 1, 2025
This seems to answer any doubt about whether Jabbar planned and executed this on his own. He had help, and it appears an extensive terrorist cell was involved. Who the three men and a woman were isn’t publicly known yet, but I’d suspect the FBI already has some idea.
The next question is going to be whether there was foreign involvement, and the answer to that is almost certainly yes. It may not manifest with ISIS having written a command letter, but many mosques throughout the United States feature foreign-connected radicals who seek to spread their death and destruction by radicalizing others.
Whatever the details of this attack turn out to be, it’s serious. This can’t be brushed under the rug as “workplace violence” as the terrorist attack on Fort Hood was. The cat is out of the bag, and the FBI and the Biden administration need to be completely transparent with the public. Anything less than that is simply unacceptable.
This is a developing story.
