The soldier, Matthew Livelsberger, present in the Cybertruck which exploded in front of the Trump Hotel in Las Vegas, left messages, explaining that he did not want to attack the new President-elect. The latter suffered in particular from “post-traumatic stress”. According to the FBI, “no connection with any terrorist organization.”
The soldier found dead of a bullet in the head in the Cybertruck Tesla, which exploded this Wednesday in front of the Trump hotel in Las Vegas, was suffering from “post-traumatic stress”, et “had no animosity towards the president” newly elected, the American authorities assured Friday.
“This appears to be a tragic case of suicide involving a decorated veteran […] who struggles with post-traumatic stress disorder and other issues”explained the FBI agent in charge of the investigation, Spencer Evans, during a press conference.
Matthew Livelsberger was a member of the US Army Special Forces, and more specifically the Green Berets, a unit specializing in guerrilla warfare. He had notably been deployed in Afghanistan or Ukraine, according to The World.
“No animosity towards the president”
This act, which occurred just hours after a car-ramming attack which killed 14 people in New Orleans, carried out by a former soldier inspired by the Islamic State (IS) group, raises multiple questions about the motivations of the suspicious. These two former soldiers rented the two cars online, on the same carpooling application.
Also read:
Explosion of a Tesla Cybertruck in Las Vegas: the suspect injured by a gunshot to the head, a possible suicide mentioned by the city sheriff
Investigators have not yet established “no link” between this 37-year-old soldier and any terrorist organization, recalled this FBI official. Likewise, there is nothing to establish a link between the explosion in Las Vegas and the attack in New Orleans, according to the American federal police.
“National problems, societal problems”
The exploitation of the suspect's phone is still ongoing and is beginning to reveal confusing motivations. Investigators notably found two letters there where he mentions “political grievances”explained a Las Vegas sheriff's deputy, Dori Koren.
Matthew Livelsberger discusses “questions about conflicts elsewhere” in the world and “national problems, societal problems”as well as “personal challenges”he detailed. Excerpts from these letters were revealed during the press conference. “We are the United States of America, the greatest country that ever lived”writes the soldier in one of the letters. “But right now we are fatally ill and heading towards collapse. This was not a terrorist attack, but a wake-up call.”
The suspect also explains having organized an explosion because “Americans only pay attention to spectacles and violence”. To explain his action, he cites trauma suffered during his military career. “I needed to clear my mind of the brothers I lost and relieve myself of the burden of the lives I took”he writes.
