Driver Who Exploded Cybertruck In Las Vegas Argued Over ‘Political Grievances’ And Domestic Issues Before Suicide

CNN
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The man who exploded a Tesla Cybertruck outside the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas was writing about “political grievances,” armed conflicts elsewhere and domestic problems in the days leading up to his suicide, officials said Friday.

The writings were found on the cell phone of Matthew Alan Livelsberger, the truck driver, Sheriff Dori Koren of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department said at a news conference.

In his writings, the driver of the Cybertruck said the incident was not intended as a “terrorist attack” but rather “a wake-up call,” according to police. He wrote in a letter that investigators had found that “Americans only care about spectacles and violence” and “fireworks and explosives” best got his point across.

Livelsberger wrote that he needed to “cleanse” his mind of the “brothers I have lost” and relieve himself of “the burden of the lives I took.” He said the United States was “terminally ill and headed for collapse.”

The cybertruck was detonated outside a Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas on Wednesday. Livelsberger, 37, of Colorado, died in the incident and seven others were injured. Authorities said Friday that his identity had been confirmed.

Spencer Evans, the special agent in charge of the FBI’s Las Vegas Division, said the incident appeared to be “a tragic case of suicide involving a highly decorated combat veteran struggling with PTSD and other issues.”

Evans said “other family issues or personal grievances in his own life … may have been contributing factors” in the man’s actions. “It is clear that the subject contemplated, planned and prepared for this act on his own,” he added.

Investigators said they were still poring over “a lot of content” related to the case, including two cell phones, and noted there was no connection between Livelsberger and the New Orleans attack.

Livelsberger, an active-duty U.S. Army Green Beret, was on leave from his base in Germany at the time of the blast, sources told CNN. The explosion was caused by a combination of fireworks, petrol tanks and camping fuel in the vehicle’s bed, detonated by a device controlled by the driver.

In a 10-day “activity journal” or “surveillance log” kept on one of his phones — from Dec. 21 to Dec. 31 — investigators said Livelsberger recorded his purchases of firearms, camping equipment and other items.

Editor’s note: Help is available if you or someone you know is struggling with suicidal thoughts or mental health issues. In the US: Call or text 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. Globally: The International Association for Suicide Prevention and Befrienders Worldwide has contact information for shelters around the world.