Suspect in New Orleans massacre identified as former US Army soldier who deployed to Afghanistan

Authorities have identified the now-deceased suspect in the New Year’s Day New Orleans massacre as 42-year-old Shamsud-Din Jabbar of Texas. The FBI has also indicated that agents do not believe Jabbar was acting “solely alone” and are pursuing leads into Jabbar’s friends and associates currently.

Jabbar reportedly served in the Army on active duty from 2007 through 2015 and then in the reserves from 2015 through 2020. He was reportedly a human resources and information technology specialist who deployed once to Afghanistan from February 2009 through January 2010.

Officials are still piecing together information about the attack, but they indicated that they found a series of recordings made by Jabbar that were apparently made while he was driving from his home in Texas to Louisiana, where he committed his heinous crimes. In the videos, Jabbar reportedly talked about his decision to join ISIS and apparently referenced several dreams he had that led him to align with the infamous terror group.

Earlier in the day Wednesday, FBI officials confirmed that Jabbar had an ISIS flag on him at the time of the attack. Although the FBI has now confirmed that this is being investigated as an act of terrorism, the first public statement made by the FBI mysteriously and flatly stated that this was “not a terrorist event.”

According to divorce documents obtained by CNN, Jabbar had been working as a real estate agent and claimed in 2022 to be suffering from severe financial troubles, including a potential imminent house foreclosure.

Meanwhile, the death toll from the attack has now risen to 15, according to the New Orleans Coroner’s Office. It was not immediately clear if the change in the death toll was due to inaccurate initial information or whether additional people had succumbed to injuries throughout the day.

In a statement, President-elect Donald Trump promised that the incoming Trump administration will support the city of New Orleans, saying that “our hearts are with all of the innocent victims and their loved ones, including the brave officers of the New Orleans Police Department.”

Outgoing President Joe Biden is also expected to address the nation Wednesday night regarding the terror attack.