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Person in exploded Cybertruck believed to be elite soldier Person in exploded Cybertruck believed to be elite soldier
(about 1 hour later)
The man who rented a Tesla Cybertruck that exploded outside of President-elect Donald Trump's Las Vegas hotel is an active-duty US special forces soldier, officials have confirmed. Watch: Las Vegas police say driver in Tesla Cybertruck explosion likely US soldier
Las Vegas police identified Matthew Alan Livelsberger, 37, of Colorado, as the renter of the vehicle who drove the Cybertruck from Colorado to Las Vegas. The man who rented a Tesla Cybertruck that exploded outside the Trump Hotel in Las Vegas was an active-duty US special forces soldier, officials have confirmed.
They said they were fairly certain he was the same person found dead in the vehicle after the explosion but were waiting for DNA evidence to confirm this. Las Vegas police have identified Matthew Alan Livelsberger, 37, as the man who rented the vehicle and drove it from Colorado to Las Vegas.
The body was burnt beyond recognition and found with a gunshot wound to the head believed to be self-inflicted, according to Las Vegas Sheriff Kevin McMahill. Officials said they are fairly certain he was found dead in the vehicle after the explosion but are waiting to confirm that through DNA evidence.
The body in the vehicle was burnt beyond recognition and was found with a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, Las Vegas Sheriff Kevin McMahill said on Thursday.
The explosion injured seven people after the vehicle - filled with fuel canisters and firework mortars - exploded. Officials said all injuries were minor. Seven people were injured when the vehicle - filled with fuel canisters and firework mortars - exploded on New Year's Day. Officials said all injuries were minor.
Authorities said they were yet to determine any motive. The Cybertruck arrived in the city on Wednesday morning, less than two hours before the detonation, police have said. Parked in front of the hotel near a glass entrance, the vehicle started to smoke, then exploded.
"I'm comfortable calling it a suicide with a bombing that occurred immediately after," Las Vegas Sheriff Kevin McMahill said during a Thursday afternoon press conference. Follow updates live here
Livelsberger rented the Cybertruck on 28 December in Denver, Colorado. He has decades of experience with the US military, having served in the Army and National Guard. Authorities said they have yet to determine any motive behind the incident.
He entered the active duty Army in December 2012, serving as a special operations soldier. "I'm comfortable calling it a suicide with a bombing that occurred immediately after," Sheriff McMahill said during Thursday's press conference.
The US Army said he was on approved leave at the time of his death. The sheriff said investigators recovered a military ID, a passport, two semi-automatic pistols, fireworks, an iPhone, a smart watch and several credit cards in Livelsberger's name from the charred vehicle.
Livelsberger's father spoke to the BBC's news partner CBS and said his son was currently serving in Germany and on leave to visit Colorado and see his wife and eight-month-old daughter. Mr McMahill said they found two tattoos on the driver's remains matching ones Livelsberger had.
Livelsberger's father said he last spoke to his son at Christmas and that everything seemed normal. The Colorado Springs native rented the Cybertruck on 28 December in Denver.
This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly. Please refresh the page for the fullest version. Police were able to track his movements using a number of photographs on the drive from Denver, Colorado to Las Vegas, Nevada. He was the only one seen driving the vehicle.
You can receive Breaking News on a smartphone or tablet via the BBC News App. You can also follow @BBCBreaking on X, external to get the latest alerts. Mr McMahill said there are several parallels - but no definitive link - between the suspects in the incident in Las Vegas and a truck attack in New Orleans that left 14 dead, which both took place on New Year's Day.
Both suspects served at Fort Bragg in North Carolina, though there is no record they served in same unit or were there at the same time. They also both served in Afghanistan in 2009, but there is no evidence they were in the same region or unit.
Both also used rental company Turo for the vehicles involved in the incidents, Mr McMahill said.
"We don't believe there's any further threat from this subject or anybody associated to him here in Las Vegas," he said.
Livelsberger had decades of experience with the US military, having served in both the Army and National Guard. He was a decorated Special Forces Intelligence Sergeant.
He was serving in Germany but on approved leave at the time of the incident.
Livelsberger's father told the BBC's news partner CBS that his son was in Colorado to see his wife and eight-month-old daughter.
He said he last spoke to his son at Christmas and that everything seemed normal.