Shamsud-Din Jabbar, the deceased suspect in the vehicle-ramming attack in New Orleans that left at least 15 dead on Wednesday, was “inspired” by the Islamic State group and is believed to have become radicalized in recent years.
This 42-year-old American citizen born in Texas was a real estate agent and former soldier. He was the father of three children and twice divorced.
President Joe Biden explained that “just hours before the attack,” the suspect had “posted videos on social media indicating that he was inspired by the Islamic State” and showing a “desire to kill “.
Several American media outlets citing investigators reveal that Mr. Jabbar recorded videos, apparently while he was driving the day before the attack.
The New York Times says he “pledges allegiance to ISIS.”
Investigators told CNN that Mr. Jabbar said he “planned to reunite his family with the intention of killing them (…) But that he changed his plans and joined ISIS.”
His brother, Abdur Jabbar, who spoke to the New York Times, speaks of him as “a sweetheart, a nice guy, a friend, very intelligent, caring.”
Convert to Islam
It said the suspect had converted to Islam at a young age, stressing: “What he did does not represent Islam. It is rather a form of radicalization.”
Chris Pousson, a childhood friend also contacted by the New York daily, remembers a person who did not “create problems”.
The retired soldier said Mr. Jabbar “was never threatening, but you could see he had become really intense about his faith.”
“He wasn’t a terrorist to me,” a former neighbor in Houston, Marilyn Bradford, 70, told the New York Times, recounting that he offered to do her shopping and gave her gifts of household appliances.
Mr. Jabbar moved to a Muslim neighborhood in Houston a year ago, according to press reports.
A real estate agent
Dwayne Marsh, the current husband of Jabbar’s first wife, whom he divorced in 2012, told the New York Times that the suspect had behaved “erratically” in recent months, “being completely crazy.”
The couple therefore banned the two daughters aged 15 and 20, whom Ms Marsh had had with Jabbar, from spending time with him.
In a video dating from 2020, the suspect sells his real estate agent services with a southern United States accent, claiming “to be a tough negotiator”.
“Good evening. I am Shamsud-Din Jabbar (…). I was born and raised in Beaumont, Texas and now live in Houston. I have stayed here all my life, with the exception of my trips for the army,” he proudly recounts his military past.
In this video, he poses in front of a screen on which it is written in large letters: “Discipline”.
Former military
According to the Department of Defense, he was in the Army from 2007 to 2015, including a deployment to Afghanistan from 2009 to 2010. As such, he was awarded the War on Terrorism Medal created for soldiers sent to Iraq and Afghanistan after September 11, 2001.
In his video, Jabbar says he “learned” in the army “what it means to be reactive and take everything seriously (…) to make sure things go smoothly.”
He had worked for Deloitte and Touche from 2021 to 2024, the company confirmed. According to the Wall Street Journal, on his internal company profile, he cites a surah from the Quran “that explains how faithful Muslims will be rewarded by God.”
His criminal record includes two charges for minor offenses: theft in 2002 and driving with an invalid license in 2005. He also pleaded guilty to drunk driving in 2015.
He divorced in 2022 from his second wife with whom he had a son. According to the New York Times, in the proceedings, he reported financial difficulties, saying he had lost $28,000 in his agency.
The Wall Street Journal indicates that his wife, Shaneen Jabbar, had obtained a restraining order in 2020. “The order stipulated that he could not make prank calls to her in the night, cancel her credit cards,” according to the newspaper.
Mr. Jabbar had obtained a degree in computer science at Georgia State University after spending two years there between 2015 and 2017, a university spokesperson told AFP.
