Who Is Shamsud-Din Jabbar? Investigating New Orleans attacker

The FBI identified the perpetrator of a recent attack as 42-year-old Shamsud-Din Jabbar, a US citizen and Army veteran hailing from Texas.

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The investigation into the incident revealed troubling links to extremist ideologies, as authorities found a flag associated with Daesh inside the vehicle Jabbar was operating.

In a public address, US President Joe Biden confirmed that the FBI had briefed him on the situation. He stated that Jabbar had posted videos on social media just hours before the attack, expressing his inspiration from Daesh and a "desire to kill." The FBI is currently examining the extent of Jabbar's potential affiliations with terrorist organizations.

Additionally, authorities discovered suspected improvised explosive devices in the vicinity of the attack, raising concerns about the intent and planning behind Jabbar's actions. A long gun equipped with a suppressive device, which functions as a silencer, was also recovered from the scene.

Jabbar's military background includes various roles within the US Army, where he served in human resources and IT. He was deployed to Afghanistan between February 2009 and January 2010.

In a 2020 YouTube video, Jabbar reflected on his military experience, stating that it taught him "the meaning of great service and what it means to be responsive and take everything seriously, dotting i's and crossing t's to make sure that things go off without a hitch."

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After his military service, Jabbar pursued higher education at Georgia State University, where he earned a degree in computer information systems between 2015 and 2017. His personal life reveals a history of two marriages; his first ended in 2012, while his second lasted from 2017 until 2022. Jabbar also dabbled in real estate, holding a license that expired in 2021.

In terms of legal troubles, he had a criminal record that included traffic offenses and theft. The vehicle involved in the incident was an electric pickup truck, believed to have been rented in Texas through the app Turo. The ongoing investigation seeks to uncover more details about Jabbar's motives and connections to extremist groups.