Shamsud-Din Jabbar paid several visits to New Orleans in the months before his deadly New Year’s Day attack on Bourbon Street.
In a press conference on Sunday, authorities revealed that Jabbar visited New Orleans twice while planning the assault on the French Quarter that killed 14 and wounded dozens more. They shared that he wore a pair of Meta smart glasses during a trip to the historic center of the city, recording scenes on Bourbon Street in October. The details of his November visit are currently unknown.
“He was in town at least two days. During that time, Jabbar, using Meta glasses, recorded a video as he rode through the French Quarter on a bicycle,” FBI New Orleans special agent in charge Lyonel Myrthil shared. “This video shows Jabbar during that trip in October with his Meta glasses. As we continue to learn more about that trip, we ask anyone who may have seen or interacted with him to contact us.”
At the same press conference, authorities shared that the former U.S. Army soldier had also traveled to Cairo, Egypt and Ontario, Canada in the months prior to the attack. His motivation for those trips is unknown. They shared video and photos of Jabbar in New Orleans in the hours leading up to the assault.
Jabbar was killed in a shoot-out with police after crashing his truck into a forklift on Bourbon Street. Improvised explosive devices were later found farther up the street. A transmitter believed to be a detonator was found in the truck with Jabbar. Officials say he was wearing Meta glasses at the time of his attack but had not turned them on.
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