by Joseph Weber
City's mayor and FBI differ on whether tragedy was a terrorist attack, even as authorities confirm driver fired a gun and explosive devices.
A gun-toting driver plowed his pickup truck into a crowd of New Year's Eve revelers in New Orleans' famed French Quarter and opened fire on officers, killing 10 and injuring at least 35.
Authorities said they also found explosive devices on the truck in what they called an "intentional act."
The FBI confirmed Wednesday that it was investigating the incident as a terrorist attack.
"This morning, an individual drove a car into a crowd of people on Bourbon Street in New Orleans, killing a number of people and injuring dozens of others," the FBI wrote on the social media platform, X. "The FBI is the lead investigative agency, and we are working with our partners to investigate this as an act of terrorism."
President Joe Biden has spoken to the New Orleans mayor and has received briefings on what happened, according to CNN. The Department of Homeland Security is also helping with the investigation.
“Last night, we had over 300 officers out here, and because of the intentional mindset of this perpetrator – who went around our barricades in order to conduct this. He was hell bent on creating the carnage and the damage that he did,” Police Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick said.
The injured included two officers who were wounded when the driver shot them in an incident that occurred at the famed intersection of Canal and Bourbon Street. Both officers was hospitalized in stable condition.
The driver was killed in a firefight with police, law enforcement told Just the News.
The incident occurred around 3 a.m. Wednesday, just hours before it was to host one of the college football's biggest games, the Sugar Bowl.
Mayor LaToya Cantrell declared "the city of New Orleans was impacted by a terrorist attack,” and said police had ruled out a drunken driving incident.
“It was not a DUI situation,” she said. “This was more complex and more serious based on the information we have right now.”
“This man was trying to run over as many people as he possibly could," the mayor added added.
The FBI, however, disputed the mayor's assessment. “This is not a terrorist event," an agent told reporters.
Joseph Weber
Source: https://justthenews.com/government/local/car-plows-crowd-new-orleans-10-dead-30-injured
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