Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:02):
Bloomberg Audio Studios, podcasts, radio news, the Mitchropolitan Police Department
of Vegas holding that press conference, FBI agent responsible for
that division that area. The Vegas Sheriff also basically, of course,
covering what happened when a Tesla cybertruck exploded outside the
Trump Las Vegas Hotel. That was hours after a deadly
(00:24):
attack in New Orleans, French Quarter on New Year's Eve
that killed at least fifteen people, injured dozens. The cyber
truck explosion, killing the driver and injuring seven others. But tim,
now we know the driver, We're getting more information about
what happened leading right up to that explosion.
Speaker 2 (00:39):
Yeah, the Las Vegas Police have identified a Matthew Leiveelsberger
as the suspect, but they still need to get DNA
to identify the suspect. The suspect did have a gunshot
wound to the head before blast. The sheriff did note
that he believed it was self inflicted, but has yet
to be confirmed. Las Vegas Police Carol also not aware
of any other subjects in this case.
Speaker 1 (00:58):
I think what's also key as these two two incidents
happened so close to one another in terms of timing
that connections. Not ready to rule in, not ready to
rule out, is what we heard from that press conference.
Comment made that very strange similarities with the case in
New Orleans in terms of what happened in Vegas. The
motivation unknown for the cyber truck blast at that Vegas
Trump Vegas Hotel. That coming from the FBI, no ideology
(01:21):
leading to either the President elect, nor to Elon Musk
nor to Tesla, So there is still more to be known.
Speaker 2 (01:27):
You should know Tesla staff is planning to arrive this
afternoon to assist with the probe. We just heard that
from the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department. The FBI also
saying that the blast is being investigated globally, but there's
no current evidence connecting the subject to a terror group.
Speaker 1 (01:40):
But I still say, will say just one last point
that confident. At least we're hearing from the Las Vegas
Metropolitan Police Department that they are confident in the safety
of their community. At this point, let's get to the
broader security implications for the United States. Nick Wattams is
back with US National Security Team leader at Bloomberg News.
He joined from our DC Bureau. A lot going on.
(02:02):
We continue to get some more elements to this story,
more information, Nick, But what are you hearing from your
sources or from the US security and intelligence areas and
departments about where this goes, or what are the many
big questions that maybe are still out there.
Speaker 3 (02:22):
Well, it looks like the biggest question now has essentially
been answered, which to a lot of people's mind was
what was the connection between these two incidents. Obviously during
the press conference there you heard the sheriff say that
there were certain similarities, but officials are now saying essentially
that they see no direct connection between these two attacks.
There had been some reporting that the two suspects there
(02:46):
were both obviously US military veterans, may have overlapped briefly
at a base in the United States during their time
when they served. But for the moment, that looks like
it was a little bit of a false trail and
there was no though that was you know, a lot
of people's immediate instinct. The other thing that really struck
me from that press conference was them saying they are
(03:07):
looking globally so trying to figure out what putting each
of these attacks in their context. Obviously, there was the
New Orleans attack, the suspect had an Islamic state flag
in his car. Authorities said no such indication on the
Las Vegas one, but it looks like authorities are not
ruling out the possibility that, you know, these may have
(03:30):
not been loan actors, that they might have had some
support network.
Speaker 4 (03:33):
So that's still a big unknown that we're looking into.
Speaker 2 (03:36):
What surprised me or was What really struck me nick
during this press conference, especially compared to the one we
saw with the FBI and other law enforcement officials out
of New Orleans earlier today, was that in New Orleans,
officials were very quick to say this was terrorism. It's
being treated as terrorism. We didn't hear that from this
press conference this afternoon. How do you read into.
Speaker 3 (03:56):
That, well, a very orny and sensitive issue, how these
attacks get labeled terrorism or not. I would suspect that
the reason for the New Orleans attack being labeled that
way was they found that Islamic state flag in there.
There was a lot of conflicting information, of course, going
(04:17):
around in the run up to that, whether the suspect
was a migrant had come from abroad, when in fact
we learned he was a US citizen, had served in
the army for many years. But you know, when you
see that flag, that Islamic State flag in the car,
that's a pretty telling indication.
Speaker 4 (04:38):
Of course.
Speaker 3 (04:38):
The big question there again is was this suspect inspired
by the Islamic State, essentially self radicalized, as has happened
with some attacks in the past, or was this some
bigger operation or part of some bigger operation by the group,
which we do have indications has sort of come back
(05:00):
after the punishing campaign by the US to essentially eliminate it,
that there has been something of a resurgence. However, at
this time, I mean again stressing there is still so
much we don't know.
Speaker 4 (05:10):
About either of these attacks.
Speaker 3 (05:12):
I think in the case of the New Orleans when
there is no immediate evidence that this was planned or
orchestrated with the Islamic State, which still has a toe
hold in Syria, and all indications suggests that the suspect
there had essentially been self radicalized.
Speaker 4 (05:27):
But we're still trying to answer all those questions.
Speaker 1 (05:29):
No, absolutely, and Nick, you know, I feel like we
do have a fairmount more answers as you are laying
out and as we just heard in that press conference.
But what's top of mind for you in terms of
kind of the big question that still needs to be answered.
Speaker 3 (05:41):
Well, I think, you know, really there's the very interesting
fact that both were military veterans. At a lot of
issues are coming to light about the about the background
of the New Orleans attacker and the strain he had
potentially been under at home. We know a lot less
(06:02):
about the attacker in Las Vegas, though, I did think
it was also very interesting from the press conference there
that they said, hey, you know, they believe the effectiveness
of the bomb was not a sort of in keeping
with the level of experience. They thought that the suspect
there had, which I think is obviously an indication, as
(06:24):
officials have said that he was a special operator in
the US military. So but certainly the fact that both
appear to be American citizens, both army veterans, one we
know served in Afghanistan. We're still trying to get details
of the Las Vegas attackers military record, but there are
some similarities there that really begs some big questions, and
(06:48):
we're going to be trying to figure that out over
the next couple of days.
Speaker 1 (06:51):
Right that one response by one of the officials at
that Vegas press conference media conference comment made that very
strange similarities with the case in New Orleans what happened
in Vegas. So still some more answers that, Well, we'll
all be looking forward to it. Nick, really appreciate it.
Nick Wadhams, he's National Security team leader right here at
Bloomberg News, joining us right there from our bureau in
(07:11):
the nation's capital.
Speaker 2 (07:12):
From Washington, DC, now to Detroit. I want to bring
in Bloomberg News Auto reporter Keith Notton for more on
this and then some other Tesla news that we learned
a little earlier today that Tesla's annual vehicle sales dropped
for the first time in more than a decade, to
spite a year and push that sent deliveries to a
record in the fourth quarter. Tesla's shares selling off as
a result. We're going to get to that in just
(07:33):
a minute, Keith, but I do want to start with
the news just moments ago that we learned from officials
in Las Vegas that members of Tesla's staff are on
their way to Las Vegas to assist law enforcement agents
with finding information from this cyber truck that yesterday had
an explosive device or explosive devices in it. I'm curious
(07:53):
what types of information they can get from what happens
inside of Tesla, what happens outside of teme Esla, because
for people who aren't familiar with these vehicles, these have
quite a few cameras recording at all times on the
outside well for sure.
Speaker 5 (08:08):
So you know, modern vehicles, particularly Tesla's, are highly sophisticated.
They have a lot of devices that record what goes
on in the car, cameras being one of them. And
so while they're not for the level of a black
box on a jet or something like that, it can
provide a lot of important information if you're doing an
investigation like this. You know, we have two incidents yesterday,
(08:31):
the one in Vegas with the Tesla cybertruck and then
the attack in New Orleans on Bourbon Street, and that
was with a Ford F one fifty lightning. I've been
on the phone with Ford this morning, and they are
also cooperating with authorities to provide them any information they
can glean from that F one fifty lightning. So the
way modern cars, particularly electric vehicles, so these are both
(08:54):
electric vehicles, both rented from trurob anyway, and so they
can provide all sorts of interesting and helpful data as
this investigation goes on, I got to.
Speaker 1 (09:04):
Ask you, Keith. Okay, and again forgive us folks, because
we're trying to be very careful here and really just
talk about facts and stuff. But is it interesting that
both were electric vehicles?
Speaker 2 (09:13):
Yeah?
Speaker 5 (09:14):
Well, I mean one way to look at that, And
again I don't want to go too far into the
speculation exactly, but electric vehicles, in the case of the
New Orleans attack, they are powered by a battery that
is very heavy that adds thousands of pounds of weight
to the vehicle. So you know, if you're looking to
maximize destructive properties, more weight will do that.
Speaker 2 (09:38):
Keith, what do you make of the Turo connection here?
I think a lot of folks might be familiar with
traditional places to runt a vehicle, but are now hearing
about Turo for the first time.
Speaker 5 (09:47):
Right, And Turo, you know, it can be a little
bit like automotive Airbnb. Sometimes it's individuals who are renting
out their exotic cars. Turo has been known for exotics
and for electric vehicles. We don't know, or I don't
know the details of how these two were rented and
where they come from. I know that in the case
of Forward, from my conversations with them, they're trying to
(10:09):
help with that, but it is it is a rental
traditionally that has rented more exotic cars, different cars, electric vehicles,
not your standard hurt zenatas.
Speaker 1 (10:22):
All right, kind of leave it on that note. Keith Nulton,
thank you so much. Auto reporter at Bloomberg News joining
us in Detroit.