FBI, sheriff's department investigating Houston connection to New Orleans terrorist act
HOUSTON — While police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation continue their investigation into a terrorist act that killed at least 15 and injured more than 30 on New Year's Eve in New Orleans, authorities are looking into a possible link to the attack in Houston.
The FBI and the Harris County Sheriff's Office are conducting an investigation "related to this morning's New Orleans attack," the FBI's Houston office said Wednesday in an post on X, the social network formerly known as Twitter.
The FBI has identified the driver of the Ford pickup truck who slammed into a crowd during a New Year's Eve celebration on Bourbon Street. Shamsud Din Jabbar, 42, was fatally shot at the scene of the attack by police officers. The FBI said they are investigating Jabbar's actions as "an act of terrorism."
Jabbar, a U.S. citizen who lived in Texas and was an Army veteran, carried an ISIS flag on the trailer hitch of the truck, which appeared to be rented, the FBI said.
Police cruisers blocked off roads on Wednesday around a property in Houston that public records list for Jabbar. The residence is northwest of downtown along a leafy, semi-industrial dead-end road across from a county maintenance facility and an manufacturing office building.
Local and national law enforcement authorities gathered at the scene did not speak with reporters, who were being kept behind a fence nearby. A tactical team could be seen outside the home behind an armored SWAT truck, while officers were flying drones overhead as they continue their investigation.
"FBI Houston and the Harris County Sheriff's Office are currently conducting law enforcement activity near the intersection of Hugh Road and Crescent Peak Drive in north Houston," the FBI's Houston office said on X.
"We have secured a perimeter in that area and are asking people to avoid the area,. FBI Houston personnel and specialized teams will be on-site for several hours," the agency said in its post. "This activity is related to this morning's New Orleans attack, but due to the ongoing nature of the investigation, no further information can be provided."
"The FBI is investigating this matter as an act of terrorism," Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Justice Department’s National Security Division, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Louisiana are working with local law enforcement in New Orleans on the investigation, he said.
This story was updated with new information.
Contributing: Bart Jansen, Nick Penzenstadler and Claire Thornton.
Follow Mike Snider on X and Threads: @mikesnider & mikegsnider.
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: FBI, law enforcement investigate Houston link to New Orleans attack