By CatholicVote | Created at 2025-01-08 02:09:48 | Updated at 2025-01-08 20:12:00
18 hours ago
Tesla and X (formerly Twitter) owner Elon Musk provided significant immediate assistance to the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department in its investigation of the deadly explosion New Year’s Day outside of the Trump International Hotel Las Vegas.
“I have to thank Elon Musk specifically,” said Metropolitan Police Department Sheriff Kevin McMahill during a press briefing after the fireworks-packed Tesla Cybertruck exploded. “He gave us quite a bit of additional information in regards to how the vehicle was locked after it exploded, due to … the nature of the force from the explosion.”
Musk sent a team of mechanics to Las Vegas to assist police with retrieving data and video from the rented truck carrying bomber Matthew Livelsberger, an active duty special forces soldier who oversaw drone operations and maintenance, according to the Washington Post.
Police said Livelsberger shot himself in the head just prior to the explosion, which injured seven others.
McMahill said the Cybertruck contains a “tremendous number of cameras” that may assist in the ongoing investigation.
Musk also repeatedly posted immediate updates on X, his own social media site.
We have now confirmed that the explosion was caused by very large fireworks and/or a bomb carried in the bed of the rented Cybertruck and is unrelated to the vehicle itself.
All vehicle telemetry was positive at the time of the explosion. https://t.co/HRjb87YbaJ
“The whole Tesla senior team is investigating this matter right now,” Musk wrote. “Will post more information as soon as we learn anything. We’ve never seen anything like this.”
He later added: “We have now confirmed that the explosion was caused by very large fireworks and/or a bomb carried in the bed of the rented Cybertruck and is unrelated to the vehicle itself. All vehicle telemetry was positive at the time of the explosion.”
The evil knuckleheads picked the wrong vehicle for a terrorist attack. Cybertruck actually contained the explosion and directed the blast upwards.
Not even the glass doors of the lobby were broken. https://t.co/9vj1JdcRZV
“The evil knuckleheads picked the wrong vehicle for a terrorist attack” Musk wrote. “Cybertruck actually contained the explosion and directed the blast upwards. Not even the glass doors of the lobby were broken.”
The Washington Post further reported: “While authorities can subpoena companies that have information critical to an investigation, Musk’s public involvement in the high-profile case — and his frequent updates and commentary on the case to his more than 200 million followers on X — is unusual for a CEO of a major company.”
Personal injury attorney Brett Schreiber applauded Musk for immediately assisting police in Las Vegas in their investigation, but also questioned whether Tesla would do the same if its product had some responsibility in an adverse situation.
“Tesla vehicles can often be the best eyewitness to a collision or a crime,” Schreiber told the Post. “The question is whether Tesla will freely share that information with law enforcement regardless of whether it implicates or exonerates Tesla from responsibility.”
McMahill pointed to a confluence of factors in the case that have raised alarms. “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 are obviously things to be concerned about there, and it’s stuff we continue to look at,” he said Wednesday.
Musk has been tapped by Trump to serve as co-commissioner, along with Vivek Ramaswamy, of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) in the new administration.
