US Army Veteran For 13 Years, Twice Divorced: What We Know About New Orleans Attack Suspect

Shamsud-Din Jabbar, a former US Army veteran, was identified as the suspect in the New Orleans attack that killed 15.

Texas man, Shamsud-Din Jabbar (42) is the main accused in the New Orleans attack.

Source : X

The suspect in the New Orleans attack, Shamsud-Din Jabbar, who crashed a truck into New Year revellers killing 15, served in the US Army for 13 years, including a deployment to Afghanistan. 

The 42-year-old Texas man did not act alone, said federal officials and local law enforcement, adding they were looking for an accomplice. 

According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Jabbar had an Islamic State flag on his truck and the probe agency is treating the attack as a potential act of terrorism. 

Jabbar served in the army as a human resource specialist and information technology specialist from 2007 until 2015, according to The Guardian. Later, he joined the Army Reserve as an IT specialist till 2020 where he held the rank of staff sergeant at the end of the service, as per an army official. 

He was deployed to Afghanistan from February 2009 to January 2010, the official said. Additionally, he enlisted in the Navy in august 2004 under a delayed entry programme but was discharged a month later, a Navy official told Reuters. 

In recent years, Jabbar has been involved in a series of businesses, according to the Guardian report. 

Following the attack, a YouTube video from 2020 surfaced online where a man with the same name as the suspect said his time in the military had taught him the importance of great service and taking everything seriously. 

“I’ve taken those skills and applied them to my career as a real estate agent, where I feel like what really sets me apart from other agents is my ability to be able to be a fierce negotiator,” he said, encouraging clients to give him a call.

The man introduced himself as a manager at Blue Meadow Properties LLC, a Texas-based company whose licence expired in 2020. Jabbar was registered as a real estate sales agent for four years through February 2023, the report added. 

The suspect said he was born and raised in Beaumont, Texas. He graduated from George State University with a degree in Computer Information Systems from 2015 to 2017, reported BBC. 

Jabbar has been divorced twice, reported The New York Times. During the divorce in 2022, he reportedly wrote an email stating he needed to settle the divorce because he could not afford to make his house payment otherwise.