One person was killed and seven were injured when a Tesla Cybertruck exploded and caught fire outside the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas Wednesday morning, according to the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD).
Matthew Alan Livelsberger, 37, a serving U.S. Army Green Beret from Colorado Springs, is considered the prime suspect by investigators. Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Sheriff Kevin McMahillLiveslberger's military ID, who provided the new details during a press conference Thursday. Credit cards and passports were found in the Cybertruck, he said. Livelsberger is identified as the person who rented the Cybertruck, and video identifies him as the driver at various Tesla Supercharging stations between Colorado and Las Vegas.
McMahill stopped short of naming Livelsberger as the victim and said he would wait for DNA to confirm his identity. He died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound shortly before the explosion, the police chief said. The gun was registered to Livelsberger.
An eyewitness shot a video of the fire inside the hotel lobby. Posted on X. The car pulled out and “exploded,” he said. The video and others like it quickly went viral on X.
Law enforcement continues to investigate several leads, McMahill said. Governor Joe Lombardo said his office is working with LVMPD and partner agencies.
In both media briefings, McMahill referenced the deadly attack that occurred Wednesday morning in New Orleans. At least 15 people were killed.. He said there was no direct connection to the attack, but law enforcement was taking precautions.
“We're very aware of what happened in New Orleans with what happened there, the death toll there and the additional IEDs,” he said at a press conference Wednesday afternoon. “So as you can imagine, with an explosion on iconic Las Vegas Boulevard, we are taking all necessary precautions to keep our community safe.”
in one Explanation Speaking late Wednesday, McMahill said he rented the Cybertruck in Colorado through peer-to-peer rental company Turo and drove to PT Las Vegas, arriving around 7:30 a.m.
McMahill noted that the Ford truck used in the New Orleans attack was rented through Turo. He called it a “coincidence” and said it was under investigation. Turo, which was founded in 2010 and has been compared to Airbnb for cars, allows private car owners to rent out their vehicles through the startup's website or app. Presented for a company. IPO in 2022A public release is expected this year.
A Turo spokesperson said in an emailed statement to TechCrunch that the company is working with law enforcement.
“We are heartbroken by the acts of violence in New Orleans and Las Vegas, and our prayers are with the injured and their families. We are actively cooperating with law enforcement authorities as we investigate both incidents,” the emailed statement said. “We do not believe that either of the renters involved in the Las Vegas and New Orleans attacks have a criminal background that would be considered a security threat.” We are committed to maintaining the highest standards of risk management thanks to our world-class trust and safety technologies and teams comprised of experienced former law enforcement professionals.”
McMahill said law enforcement is looking for secondary devices and there does not appear to be an additional threat to the Las Vegas community. “If any of that changes, you obviously want to hear directly from me to give you an update,” he said.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk Lots of notes posted. X initially reported that “the entire senior Tesla team is investigating the incident.” “I will update the information as it becomes available. Never seen anything like it,” Musk wrote.
Musk later posted that the car was operating normally, according to telemetry data viewed by the Tesla team.
“It has now been confirmed that the explosion was caused by very large fireworks and/or a bomb carried in the bed of the rented Cybertruck and not the vehicle itself. The telemetry of all vehicles at the time of the explosion was positive,” he wrote.
McMahill personally thanked Musk for providing law enforcement with specific information about the Cybertruck's operation and videos from individual Tesla charging stations.
The incident occurred because Musk, who owns X, has close ties to President-elect Donald Trump. Review Musk's flight data At least 31 flights to Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida were shown. This week, Reporting now. Musk stayed at a home on the Mar-a-Lago property.
One person died and many were injured due to the explosion. This article has been updated with new information, including images and contents found inside the vehicle.