A Tesla Cybertruck pulled up to the glass entrance doors of Trump International Hotel Las Vegas on New Year's Day, began emitting smoke and then exploded, according to authorities.
Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Sheriff Kevin McMahill said in a media briefing that one individual in the car died and seven others sustained injuries. McMahill added that authorities were investigating "a number of leads."
He also acknowledged the alleged terror attack in New Orleans early on New Year's Day, during which a driver rammed into a crowd, killing at least 10 people. Law enforcement later found suspected improvised explosive devices in the city.
McMahill said local authorities were searching Las Vegas for any "secondary devices," adding that "...there does not appear to be any further threat to our community here, now."
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In a subsequent briefing on Wednesday afternoon, McMahill stated that investigators found gas tanks, camping fuel, and large firework mortars in the Cybertruck's bed. However, they have not yet located any devices which might have set off these materials, leaving questions regarding how they were ignited.
The Cybertruck had been rented in Colorado and driven to Las Vegas, with investigators tracking it via Tesla charging stations (McMahill revealed that Tesla CEO Elon Musk provided law enforcement with video from said stations). Arriving in the city at approximately 7:30 a.m. as detected by a license plate reader, the truck was driven up and down Las Vegas Boulevard for approximately one hour before it pulled into the Trump International Hotel's valet area and exploded at around 8:40 a.m. Trump Hotel was closed and evacuated following the explosion.
"The fact that this was a Cybertruck really limited the damage that occurred inside of the valet, because it had most of the blast go up through the truck and out," said McMahill, noting that the vehicle's exterior appeared "completely intact." "The front glass doors at the Trump Hotel were not even broken by that blast which they were parked directly in front of."
McMahill further noted that the seven individuals who were harmed suffered only minor injuries. Though two were briefly hospitalised, they have since been discharged.
The FBI is conducting an investigation into the explosion through its Joint Terrorism Task Force comprised of local law enforcement officers. Special agent in charge Jeremy Schwartz stated that their first priority is positively identifying the person who was in the Cybertruck, while their secondary goal is to determine whether it was an act of terrorism.
McMahill confirmed that they are investigating any potential connection between this incident and the alleged terror attack in New Orleans, "as well as other attacks that have been occurring around the world." He also noted the connection between Musk and President-elect Donald Trump as another possibility they were exploring regarding potential motives.
"I mean, it's a Tesla truck, and we know that Elon Musk is working with president-elect Trump, and it's the Trump Tower, so there's obviously things to be concerned about there, and it's something we continue to look at," McMahill said.
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The Cybertruck and the vehicle involved in the New Orleans incident were both rented via peer-to-peer car-sharing app Turo, the company confirming as such in a blog post on Wednesday. Even so, this could easily be a coincidence. As of October, approximately 250,000 cars were reportedly registered with Turo in the U.S.
"We do not believe that either renter had a criminal background that would have identified them as a security threat, and we are not currently aware of any information that indicates the two incidents are related," stated Turo, noting that it is working with law enforcement to share any information that may be useful to the investigations.
The cause of the Cybertruck's explosion outside of the Trump hotel was not immediately confirmed by authorities. However, a later media briefing revealed that the Cybertruck's bed contained gas tanks, camping fuel, and large firework mortars. Exactly how they were ignited has not yet been determined, with the investigation still ongoing.
Musk said the explosion was caused by "fireworks and/or a bomb in the bed of the rented cybertruck" in an X post prior to the second media briefing on Wednesday. Earlier, Musk posted on X that the "whole senior Tesla team" was investigating the matter.
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"We’ve never seen anything like this," he wrote.
Musk is a close adviser to Trump, as well as one of his biggest donors. Musk gave at least $277 million to Trump and other Republicans during the 2024 election cycle, according to The Washington Post.
The Cybertruck has been plagued by recalls this year. In December, 700,000 Tesla vehicles, including certain Cybertrucks, were affected by a recall related to a tire pressure warning light. The problem could cause users to unknowingly drive on low-pressure tires. Other recall notices involved glitches with the windshield wiper, rearview display, and accelerator pedal.
UPDATE: Jan. 1, 2025, 4:17 p.m. PST This story has been updated to correct the number of Cybertrucks affected by a December recall. The tire pressure warning recall applied to 700,000 Tesla vehicles overall, including certain Cybertrucks.
UPDATE: Jan. 2, 2025, 4:41 p.m. AEDT This article has been updated to include further details disclosed at the second press briefing as well as Turo's statement.
