Police say driver of exploding Cybertruck shot himself

Authorities believe the suspect in Wednesday’s Tesla Cybertruck explosion shot himself in the head before the vehicle detonated, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Sheriff Kevin McMahill said at a Thursday press conference. Authorities also preliminarily identified the suspect in the truck as 37-year-old Master Sgt. Matthew Alan Livelsberger of the U.S. Army. The body must still be formally identified with DNA and medical records after being burned beyond recognition, McMahill said.

Beyond the rental records linking Livelsberger to the truck, investigators found the master sergeant’s military identification, passport, and credit cards in the burned-out cab. Two tattoos of Livelsberger’s also appear to match the body in the truck. Medical examiners found what they believe to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound to Livelsberger’s head that occurred before the explosion. Investigators found two handguns in the car, specifically one at the subject’s feet, McMahill said. Livelsberger legally purchased both firearms on Dec. 30, according to Kenny Cooper, a special agent for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

What do we know about Livelsberger? He was an active-duty Green Beret sergeant from Colorado who was on approved leave from his post in Germany at the time of the attack. McMahill reiterated that the Las Vegas attack was not linked to the fatal New Year’s attack in New Orleans, but acknowledged several similarities between attackers. Both served at Fort Bragg in North Carolina, but there’s no evidence of the men serving in the same unit or even at the same time, McMahill said. The pair also served in Afghanistan in 2009, but there’s no evidence that they were stationed in the same province or unit while overseas, he added. Both suspects also used the Turo car-sharing company to rent their vehicles, McMahill said.

Dig deeper: Read Travis K. Kircher’s original report on the New Year’s Day attack.