New Orleans attacker used Meta glasses to plot 'hideous' massacre that killed 14 people
WATCH: Chairman for Republican Overseas Greg Swenson says the attack 'shouldn't have been a major surprise'
GB News
A man who killed 14 people in a New Year's Day attack in New Orleans used Meta smart glasses to conduct reconnaissance of the area months before the massacre.
Shamsud-Din Jabbar, 42, wore the high-tech glasses whilst cycling through the French Quarter during visits in October and November, the FBI revealed on Sunday.
The attacker was wearing the same glasses during his deadly rampage on Bourbon Street, though investigators say they were not activated for recording or live-streaming during the attack.
Jabbar was shot and killed by police after ploughing his truck through crowds of New Year's revellers, leaving scores injured alongside the 14 fatalities.
Shamsud-Din Jabbar was shot and killed
Getty
FBI Special Agent in Charge Lyonel Myrthil said Jabbar stayed at a rental home in New Orleans from late October, spending at least two days recording footage of the area.
The suspect made a second visit in November, with investigators recovering video showing him cycling through what would later become the site of his deadly attack.
The Meta glasses, which resemble regular spectacles, allow users to record photos and videos hands-free, as well as potentially live-stream footage.
Investigators recovered the glasses from Jabbar's body at the scene of the attack, where he had been killed in a firefight with officers in the early hours of New Year's Day.
Beyond the truck attack, Jabbar had placed two homemade bombs in coolers around the French Quarter, but neither device detonated.
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The scene in New Orleans after the horror New Year's Day attackREUTERS"He didn't use the right or correct device to set it off," said Joshua Jackson, special agent in charge of the New Orleans ATF office.
"That is just indicative of his experience and lack of understanding of how that material might be set off."
CCTV footage showed Jabbar placing one explosive device in a cooler at Bourbon and St. Peter Streets at 1.53 am, which was later moved by unwitting bystanders.
A second explosive was placed in another "bucket-type cooler" approximately 30 minutes later.
Unable to obtain military-grade detonators, Jabbar had planned to use an electric match to trigger the explosives.
Jabbar, a US Army veteran, had worked in information technology roles both in the military and at major firms including Deloitte and Ernst & Young.
New Orleans attacker Shamsud-Din Jabbar was a military veteranYOUTUBEThe FBI said he claimed in online videos to have "joined ISIS earlier this year" and an ISIS flag was found in his vehicle.
Investigators are probing Jabbar's international travels, including a trip to Cairo from June 22 to July 3, 2023, followed by a brief visit to Ontario, Canada.
"We're looking at who he encounters during those trips, who is he meeting with, where has he traveled within those countries," said FBI Special Agent Myrthil.
While authorities believe Jabbar acted alone, they continue investigating his domestic and foreign associates.
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