A British national from Chelsea has been named as one of the 14 killed in the New Orleans New Year’s Day vehicle attack. Edward Pettifer, 31, was killed by “blunt force injuries” after being hit by a pickup truck driven into celebratory crowds, the US coroner said. His family are being supported by the Met Police in London.
35 more people were injured in the attack, suspected to be carried out by Shamsud-Din Jabbar, 42, who has been linked with the Islamic State (IS). An extensive investigation is under way by US police and FBI.
Here is what we know so far about what happened, who did it and who was killed.
What happened in New Orleans?
Police shot the attacker dead at the scene following a gun fight
(Image: MATTHEW HINTON/AFP via Getty Images)
At 3.15am local time, a pickup truck ploughed into crowds on Bourbon Street in the New Orleans French Quarter. CCTV shows a while Ford truck mounting the pavement to get around a police car before ramming into revellers.
The attacker then stopped and got out of the car to fire shots at police officers. Two were injured, but the attacker was killed in the gunfight by three police officers, the FBI said. The attacker was later identified as Shamsud-Din Jabbar.
Police described the attack as “very intentional” and that the attacker was “hell-bent on creating the carnage and the damage that he did.”
Witnesses told the BBC they “were walking past dead and injured bodies all over the street”.
Police also found explosive devices placed in the area earlier by Jabbar who changed his clothes once they were in place, they told ABC News. One of these was pictured by the FBI in a cooler on the street. It is unclear whether Jabbar tried to detonate the explosives he brought in the coolers or whether they malfunctioned.
Who was Shamsud-Din Jabbar?
Shamsud-Din Jabbar was brought up as a Muslim after being born in Houston, Texas. He served in the US Army in Afghanistan
(Image: FBI/AFP via Getty Images)
Shamsud-Din Jabbar was a US Army veteran and US citizen born in Texas. The pickup truck was rented from the Turo car rental platform, confirmed by the company with a “heavy heart”, a spokesperson said.
He drove from Houston to New Orleans and on the way he posted videos online professing his support for IS, authorities reported. Jabbar was raised as a Muslim in Beaumont, a city in eastern Texas near the Louisiana border. He left the religion but in recent years returned to his faith, his brother reported to CBS News..
“Then he came back into it, maybe just this time around, he was gonna take it a little more seriously,” Abdur Rahem Jabbar told CBS.
Shamsud-Din Jabbar’s now removed LinkedIn profile he worked for the US Army in human resources and IT before being discharged in 2015. He was deployed in Afghanistan from February 2009 to January 2010. His most recent address was in Houston.
He had studied at Georgia State University in 2015 to 2017 and graduated with a computer information systems degree. He was then employed at Deloitte in 2-21 and also worked for Ernst & Young.
He was married three times and has children from two relationships. His first marriage ended in 2012, and his second lasted from 2013 to 2016. He married once again in 2017 before divorcing in 2022. His most recent divorce points to financial difficulties, court records show. He most recent wife accused him of financial mismanagement and had obtained a temporary restraining order against him.
He had a criminal record relating to traffic offences and theft.
Jabbar’s brother told local Houston news outlet KPRC: “We’re all grieving about this,” he said. “This wasn’t the man I knew. This wasn’t the father, the son, that I knew. And also, this isn’t any representation of Islam, or Muslims or the Muslim community.”
Who were the victims?
Edward Pettifer, 31, was confirmed among the 14 killed in the New Orleans vehicle attacks on New Year’s Day
(Image: Met Police)
The victims were mainly local though some tourists, like Edward Pettifer from London, were caught up in the attack and killed.
Aftermath
Kier Starmer condemned the “shockingly violent attack”
(Image: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)
Edward Pettifer’s family said they were “devastated at the tragic news of Ed‘s death in New Orleans. He was a wonderful son, brother, grandson, nephew and a friend to so many.
“We will all miss him terribly. Our thoughts are with the other families who have lost their family members due to this terrible attack. We request that we can grieve the loss of Ed as a family in private. Thank you.”
Kier Stamer joined German, French, and Mexican world leaders in condemning the attack. He said: “The shockingly violent attack in New Orleans is horrific. My thoughts are with the victims, their families, the emergency responders and the people of the United States at this tragic time.”
Foreign Secretary David Lammy said consular officials in the US were on hand to help any British nationals affected. “Our hearts go out to the people of New Orleans and to all those affected by this horrific attack,” he said. “The FBI are now investigating this as a terrorist incident – this is a fast-moving situation, and we continue to wait on further information.”
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