On New Year’s Day, Shamsud-Din Jabbar drove a rented truck into Bourbon Street, targeting revelers in what US federal investigators classified as an act of terrorism. The attack resulted in the deaths of 14 people and injuries to dozens more. Jabbar himself was killed in a shootout with police.
New Orleans Attack: When the FBI raided Shamsud-Din Jabbar’s house, they found it in disarray with the front door kicked down, cabinets flung open and furniture overturned.
The 42-year-old New Orleans attacker, who had pledged allegiance to ISIS, left behind evidence of a troubled life at his North Houston home. According to the New York Post, investigators discovered bomb-making materials, a Quran opened to a verse promoting violence, and a workbench equipped for assembling explosives inside his trailer.
The Quran was open to Verse 9:111, which states: “They fight in Allah’s cause, and slay and are slain; a promise binding." Shortly before the attack, Jabbar posted chilling videos online, declaring his loyalty to ISIS and issuing threats, including to his own family.
When FBI agents raided the residence, they found the house in a state of chaos—its front door broken down, cabinets emptied, and furniture upended. In the bedroom, they discovered a keffiyeh, bomb-making tools, and scattered belongings. The property also contained chemical residues and bottles consistent with materials commonly used in explosives, as well as a rolled-up prayer rug and numerous Islamic texts.
Jabbar had previously served as an Army staff sergeant for ten years, including deployments to Afghanistan between 2009 and 2019. He left active duty in 2015 and the reserves in 2020, struggling thereafter in the real estate and IT sectors. Reflecting on the incident, his younger brother, Abdur Jabbar, remarked, “This is more some type of radicalization, not religion. He was a sweetheart really, a nice guy, a friend, really smart, caring.”
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