‘At this time, there is no threat to residents in that area,’ the bureau says.
The FBI said on Thursday that it carried out a search of a location in Houston it believes is connected to the suspected terrorist attack in New Orleans on New Year’s Day that left at least 15 dead.
A day earlier, the FBI identified Shamsud-Din Jabbar, of Texas, as the suspect behind the attack. Jabbar died in a shootout with police after ramming a truck into a crowd of New Year’s revelers in the early morning hours of Jan. 1 before exiting the vehicle and opening fire at police, according to officials.
“At this time, there is no threat to residents in that area,” the FBI said, noting that due to the ongoing nature of the investigation, it could not provide any further details about the search.
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Members of the public were advised to avoid the area, the FBI said, adding that temporary flight restrictions were also imposed.
Alethea Duncan, the FBI special agent for New Orleans, said at a news conference that officials have not ruled out whether Jabbar, who also was identified as a U.S. citizen, acted alone. She called on the public to provide relevant information about the suspect, if possible.
On Wednesday evening, President Joe Biden said in an address on the attack that “no one should jump to conclusions” about the attack, adding he is directing law enforcement to intensively investigate the matter.
“Law enforcement and the intelligence community are investigating this as well, including whether any possible connection to the attack in New Orleans,” Biden said. “Thus far, there’s nothing to report on that score at this time.”
In the New Orleans attack, the driver steered around a police blockade and raced through a crowd along Bourbon Street around 3:15 a.m. Wednesday as revelers gathered to celebrate the new year, according to police. Aside from the 15 people who were killed and about 30 injured, two police officers wounded in a shootout with the suspect were in stable condition, officials said.
Officials have not yet released the names of the 15 people killed in the New Orleans New Year’s Day truck attack.
Authorities also found potential explosive devices in the French Quarter and an ISIS flag hitched to the truck that Jabbar was driving, the FBI said. Duncan later said that the devices were rendered inert.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
