Reports have revealed more disturbing details surrounding the man responsible for the New Orleans catastrophe, as past emails uncover concerning warning signs.
Police identified Shamsud-Din Jabbar as the man driving the pick-up truck that plowed into crowds of people on Bourbon Street, killing at least 15 people and injuring dozens more.
Authorities are reportedly reviewing disturbing videos made by the suspect, where he discussed plans to kill his family and mentioned his contentious divorce from his second wife. Earlier this year, the New York Times reported that Jabbar alluded to financial issues in an email to his ex-wife’s lawyer.
“Time is of the essence. I can not afford the house payment. It is past due in excess of $27,000 and in danger of foreclosure if we delay settling the divorce,” Jabbar wrote in an email to his then-wife’s lawyer.
In a 2022 court document, the suspect said he worked at the consulting company Deloitte, earning $10,000 a month, with a salary of $120,000. However, he claimed to the lawyer he was broke and told the court he had a net monthly income of about $7,500 with monthly expenses of about $8,960.
Email correspondence and video recordings show suspect’s motives to harm others
He also said the real estate company he had built had lost more than $28,000 in the previous year and that he was $16,000 deep in credit card debt. “I have exhausted all means of bringing the loan current other than a loan modification, leaving us no alternative but to sell the house or allow it to go into foreclosure,” Jabbar wrote to the lawyer, anxious to proceed with the divorce procedures.
His divorce was finalized in 2024, but during the proceedings, his second ex-wife, Shaneen Chantil Jabbar, filed for a restraining order against him. Investigative correspondent for CNN noted that Jabbar had a normal life up until his divorce and financial issues, tracking the change through court documents.
“We are shocked to learn of reports today that the individual identified as a suspect had any association with our firm. The named individual served in a staff-level role since being hired in 2021,” Deloitte said in a statement after the New Year’s Day attacks. In Jabbar’s internal profile at the company, he wrote about his love of hunting and shared quotes from the Quran.
According to CNN, among some of the recordings, Jabbar discussed his divorce and his scheme to gather his family for a “celebration” with intent to kill them. He also referred to dreams that he had about becoming inspired to join the terror group ISIS.