'Hell bent': Gun-toting driver plows into New Orleans crowd, killing 10 in suspected terror attack

A gun-toting driver plowed his pickup truck into a crowd of New Year's Eve revelers in New Orleans' famed French Quarter and opened fire on officers, killing 10 and injuring at least 35.

Authorities said they also found explosive devices on the truck in what they called an "intentional act." The suspect has been identified as Shamsud Din Jabbar.

The FBI confirmed Wednesday that it was investigating the incident as a terrorist attack. 

Two senior law enforcement officials, speaking only on condition of anonymity, told Just the News that they are investigating the incident as possibly being inspired by ISIS and others may have been involved, though they had reached no final conclusions. Part of the concern, they said, was that an ISIS flag was found in the truck, but there was other evidence as well suggesting a possible radicalization by the group.

Jabbar was born in Houston in 1982 and only held a US passport since 2012, the officials said. His last entry into the United States was in 2023 from Toronto, they added.

During a press briefing, FBI Assistant Special Agent in Charge Alethea Duncan said that weapons and IED's were found in the car Jabbar was driving. 

“As of now, two IEDs have been found and rendered safe,” Duncan said, according to CNN. “The FBI special agent bomb technicians, as well as our local law enforcement partners, have been working to determine if any of these devices are viable, and they will work to render those devices safe."

It is also being investigated if Jabbar rented the truck that he used during the attack. 

It is also being reported that Jabbar might not have worked alone.

“From what I understand, there is a potential that other suspects could be involved in this, and all hands on deck on determining who these individuals are and finding them," New Orleans City Council President Helena Moreno told 4WWL-TV.

"Information that I received is that this individual was in full military gear, that he is apparently not local, and that he was prepared, and that he was very prepared to inflict horrific pain on the people on Bourbon Street," she added.

"This morning, an individual drove a car into a crowd of people on Bourbon Street in New Orleans, killing a number of people and injuring dozens of others," the FBI wrote on the social media platform, X. "The FBI is the lead investigative agency, and we are working with our partners to investigate this as an act of terrorism."

President Joe Biden has spoken to the New Orleans mayor and has received briefings on what happened, according to CNN. 

"My heart goes out to the victims and their families who were simply trying to celebrate the holiday," Biden said in a statement. "There is no justification for violence of any kind, and we will not tolerate any attack on any of our nation's communities."

The Department of Homeland Security is also helping with the investigation. 

“Last night, we had over 300 officers out here, and because of the intentional mindset of this perpetrator – who went around our barricades in order to conduct this. He was hell bent on creating the carnage and the damage that he did,” Police Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick said.

The injured included two officers who were wounded when the driver shot them in an incident that occurred at the famed intersection of Canal and Bourbon Street. Both officers were hospitalized in stable condition.

The driver was killed in a firefight with police, law enforcement told Just the News.

The incident occurred around 3 a.m. Wednesday, just hours before it was to host one of college football's biggest games, the Sugar Bowl.

Mayor LaToya Cantrell declared "the city of New Orleans was impacted by a terrorist attack,” and said police had ruled out a drunken driving incident.