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Matthew Livelsberger, a Green Beret who died in Vegas Cybertruck explosion, he left behind a note describing the incident as a “stunt” that would serve as a “wake-up call” for the country.
Authorities are still checking the veteran’s electronic devices as they piece together a motive behind the explosion outside Trump International Hotel on the New Year that remained Livelsberger was killed and seven other people were injured. The police described the incident as a suicide.
Two “letters” in his iPhone Notes app before the blast described his personal and political grievances, the Las Vegas Police Department revealed at a press conference Friday.
“Fellow soldiers, veterans and all Americans, TIME TO WAKE UP! We are led by a weak and reckless leadership that only serves to enrich themselves,” the first note read.
In an excerpt from another letter, Livelsberger wrote: “We are the United States of America, the best peasants that ever existed! But right now we are terminally ill and headed for collapse.”
He continued: “This was not a terrorist attack, it was a wake-up call. Americans pay attention only to spectacles and violence. What better way to get my point across than with fireworks and explosive stunts?”
“Why did I personally do it now? I had to clear my mind of the brothers I had lost and free myself of the burden of the life I had taken.”
LVMPD Assistant Sheriff Dori Koren emphasized that these insights are only “excerpts” from his letters and that he shares his thoughts on a “variety” of topics, including political grievances, social issues and personal challenges. Police plan to release the letter so the public can understand his reasoning, Koren said.
The blast happened just hours after the driver – identified as Shamsud-Din Jabbar – drove into a crowd in New Orleans, killing 14 and injuring dozens more. Spencer Evans, special agent in charge of the FBI’s Las Vegas division, clarified at a news conference Friday that there is no evidence that the two events are connected.
“The only things that connect them are coincidental, what we believe are coincidental similarities,” Evans said, noting that both vehicles were rented from the same service, both subjects were involved in the military, and both stayed at Airbnb. He said there was no information to suggest Jabbar and Livelsberger knew each other.
The FBI has not established any connection between Livelsberger and any terrorist organization, Evans said.
After interviewing his family, friends and associates, the federal agency found the 37-year-old had “no animosity whatsoever” toward President-elect Donald Trump, Evans said. The investigation showed that he probably suffered from PTSD and was dealing with family problems. Although Evans did not provide further details about the family matter, earlier on Friday, a The report claimed that Livelsberger’s wife had left him just days before he detonated the vehicle after she told him she suspected he was cheating.
The trooper is believed to have acted alone and there is no information to suggest otherwise, the Evanses said. He has not previously been on the FBI’s radar and has no criminal history.
Evans said Thursday that the motivation is unknown: “We don’t know that it’s in front of the Trump building, that it’s a Tesla vehicle. But at this point we don’t have information that definitively tells us or suggests that it was because of this particular ideology or any reason behind it.”
The Tesla firearm was legally purchased by Livelsberger at a gun store in Colorado, said Kenny Cooper, assistant special agent for the ATF’s San Francisco field division.
If you’re in the US and you or someone you know needs mental health help right now, call or text 988 or visit 988lifeline.org to access the online chat with 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. This is a free, confidential crisis hotline available to anyone 24 hours a day, seven days a week. If you are in another country, you can leave www.befrienders.org to find a helpline near you. In the UK, people experiencing a mental health crisis can contact the Samaritans at 116 123 or jo@samaritans.org