A Tesla Cybertruck is shown after it caught fire and exploded outside the lobby of President-elect Donald Trump's hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. on Jan. 1, 2025. (AFP Photo)
By Anadolu Agency
Jan 4, 2025 8:32 PM
Matthew Alan Livelsberger, a former U.S. Army special operations soldier, detonated a Tesla Cybertruck outside a Las Vegas hotel owned by President-elect Donald Trump, leaving notes on his phone calling the attack a “wake-up call” rather than a terrorist act, investigators said Friday.
Livelsberger, who died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound after the explosion, wrote that Americans “only pay attention to spectacles and violence” and explained that he used fireworks and explosives to make a point, according to investigators.
An image of Matthew Alan Livelsberger driver’s license photo is displayed on a monitor during a news conference at Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department headquarters in Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. on Jan. 02, 2025. (AFP Photo)
“Why did I personally do it now?” Livelsberger wrote in his notes. “I need to cleanse my mind of the brothers I’ve lost and relieve myself of the burden of the lives I took.”
Livelsberger, who had served in the U.S. Army, criticized what he described as “weak and feckless leadership” and called on fellow veterans and Americans to “wake up.”
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – JANUARY 02: (EDITOR’S NOTE: Image contains graphic content.) A monitor displays an image of authorities investigating a Tesla Cybertruck that exploded on New Year’s Day in front of the entrance to the Trump International Hotel & Tower Las Vegas during a news conference at Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department headquarters on January 02, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. LVMPD Sheriff Kevin McMahill said that authorities believe the person of interest in the incident is 37-year-old Matthew Alan Livelsberger, an active member of the U.S. military, but are waiting for the coroner to make the final determination. McMahill also said the driver suffered a gunshot wound to the head that is believed to have been self-inflicted. Ethan Miller/Getty Images/AFP (Photo by Ethan Miller / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP)An investigator photographs a Tesla Cybertruck that exploded outside the lobby of President-elect Donald Trump’s hotel on January 1, 2025, in Las Vegas. – At least one person was killed and seven wounded when a Tesla Cybertruck exploded outside a hotel belonging to US President-elect Donald Trump in Las Vegas, police said Wednesday. (Photo by WADE VANDERVORT / AFP)
The exact motive behind Livelsberger’s decision to target the Trump hotel and a Tesla Cybertruck remains unclear, according to authorities.
Las Vegas FBI agent Spencer Evans said Livelsberger was believed to have been suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and may have been dealing with personal or family issues that contributed to his actions.