On January 1, a Tesla Cybertruck electric pickup truck exploded in front of the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas, killing the driver and injuring seven others, local media reported. The local police are investigating the incident and have preliminarily classified it as a potential criminal case or terrorist attack.
The cause of the explosion is still unknown, and the investigation is focusing on whether it was caused by a vehicle malfunction or whether there was a human motive. According to sources, the vehicle involved contained an explosive device similar to a firecracker, and investigators are urgently confirming the suspect's motive and background.
As the hotel is associated with the US elected president Donald Trump, it has long been a focus of security threats. Eric Trump, executive vice president of the Trump Group, responded to the incident, emphasizing that the hotel will do everything to ensure the safety of guests and employees, and thanked the local law enforcement and fire departments for their quick response. The investigation into the case is ongoing.
It is noteworthy that a Tesla Cybertruck involved in the explosion in front of the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas was rented through a mobile application called Turo, the same application used to rent the pickup truck involved in the New Year's Eve attack in New Orleans, Louisiana, according to several law enforcement officials in the US.
A spokesperson for Turo said the company believes that neither of the two vehicles involved in the Las Vegas and New Orleans cases had a criminal background, so it is impossible to determine whether they posed a threat. The spokesperson added: "We are cooperating fully with law enforcement in their investigation of these incidents."
At the same time, Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, posted on a social media platform that Tesla had accessed data from a specific Cybertruck through remote access and confirmed that the explosion of the Cybertruck in front of the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas was caused by a very large firecracker and/or a bomb placed under the vehicle, and was not related to the vehicle itself.