Investigators have yet to determine what drove an active-duty U.S. Army soldier to rent a Tesla Cybertruck and drive it to the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas, where he appeared to shoot himself in the head before the vehicle exploded New Year’s Day.
Las Vegas Sheriff Kevin McMahill identified 37-year-old Matthew Livelsberger of Colorado Springs, Colorado, as a person of interest in the matter, though he would not say with 100% certainty that Livelsberger is a suspect until DNA matches the remains of a body inside the Cybertruck.
At about 8:40 a.m. New Year’s Day, the truck was seen pulling up to the valet entrance of the hotel before stopping. Seventeen seconds later, the vehicle blew up, and fireworks could be heard shooting from the bulletproof truck.
Along with fireworks, McMahill said the truck contained camping fuel and gasoline. The explosion did not damage the body of the truck, other than glass and the bed cover, the sheriff noted.
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He also said the glass doors of the hotel were not damaged, though seven bystanders sustained minor injuries.
While the subject’s body was burnt beyond recognition, McMahill also said the individual sustained a gunshot wound to the head prior to detonation, and a handgun was found at his feet inside the vehicle.
McMahill would not say Livelsberger was on a suicide mission, though he did call it “a suicide with a bombing that occurred immediately thereafter.”
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On Thursday, FBI agents searched Livelsberger’s home in Colorado Springs to try and piece together what his motive was and how he got to Las Vegas.
“We know we have a bombing, absolutely, and it’s a bombing that certainly has factors that raise concerns,” FBI Special Agent in Charge Spencer Evans said during a press conference Thursday. “It’s not lost on us that it’s in front of the Trump building and that it’s a Tesla vehicle, but we don’t have information at this point that definitively tells us … it was because of this particular ideology or any reasoning behind it.”
The Associated Press reported that Livelsberger had recently returned from an overseas assignment in Germany and was on approved leave when he died, according to a U.S. official.
A law enforcement official also told the AP investigators learned through interviews that Livelsberger may have gotten into a fight with his wife about relationship issues shortly before he rented the Tesla and legally purchased handguns found in the truck. The official spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the official was not authorized to discuss the ongoing investigation.
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Livelsberger appears to have at one point been married to Sara Livelsberger, a 38-year-old who lives in Delray Beach, Florida. The Denver Post reported Matthew Livelsberger divorced in 2018 and remarried in 2022.
In Facebook posts from 2016, Sara said she was a registered Democrat and shared images that disparaged President-elect Trump.
Although Livelsberger lives in Colorado, he has connections in Ohio.
The Columbus Dispatch in Ohio reported that Livelsberger was issued a speeding ticket in Franklin County for driving 70 mph in a 65 mph zone in September 2011.
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Livelsberger reportedly had a Westerville address, the publication reported. He also owns property in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, according to property records obtained by The Columbus Dispatch.
He graduated from Bucyrus High School in Ohio, where he played baseball and football. But after reportedly getting injured while playing football, Livelsberger enlisted in the U.S. Army and worked with the Special Forces as a communications officer.
His uncle, Dean Livelsberger, told The Independent his nephew “was a 100% patriot” and described him “like a Rambo-type, for lack of a better term.”
The Independent reported Dean said his nephew had patriotic subject matter on Facebook and loved President-elect Trump.
Dean also reportedly spoke to the publication about his nephew’s skills with explosives.
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“Matt was a very skilled warrior, and he would be able to make — if it was him, and if he did this — he would’ve been able to make a more sophisticated explosive than using propane tanks and camping fuel,” he reportedly said. “He was what you might call a ‘supersoldier.’ If you ever read about the things he was awarded and the experience he had, some of it doesn’t make sense, when he had the skills and ability to make something more, let’s say, ‘efficient.’ His skills were enormous from what he had been taught in the military.”
With those skills, Dean said, Livelsberger “could have fashioned a bomb that would have obliterated half of that hotel if he seriously wanted to hurt others.”
Livelsberger was a Green Beret operations sergeant who spent most of his time at Fort Carson, Colorado, and in Germany. McMahill said Livelsberger was approved leave from Germany, where he was serving with the special forces group. He also previously served in the National Guard and Army Reserve.
He also received several awards and honors while serving in the U.S. Army.
U.S. Army Public Affairs told Fox News Livelsberger earned the Bronze Star Medal with Valor; Bronze Star Medal four times; Meritorious Service Medal; Army Commendation Medal with Valor; Army Commendation Medal three times; Army Achievement Medal two times; Army Good Conduct Medal five times; National Defense Service Medal; Afghanistan Campaign Medal with campaign star three times; Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal; Global War on Terrorism Service Medal; Noncommissioned Officer Professional Development Ribbon three times; Army Service Ribbon; Overseas Service Ribbon; NATO Medal two times; Special Forces Tab; Combat Infantryman Badge; Parachutist Badge; and Freefall Badge.
Fox News Digital’s Sarah Rumpf-Whitten and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
