LAS VEGAS — Las Vegas police say they’re investigating a car that rammed into a power substation as a possible “terrorism-related event.”
There’s no ongoing threat to the public related to the crash, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Sheriff Kevin McMahill said in a news conference Friday.
The driver of the vehicle was a 23-year-old man from Albany, New York, who was reported missing and is now dead, McMahill said.
The man rented a car in Albany on Feb. 12 and left about two days later to drive across the country to Boulder City, according to FBI special agent Christopher Delzotto. Investigators are still determining why the substation was targeted.
Police in Boulder City, located approximately 25 miles (40 kilometers) southeast of Las Vegas, received a 911 call at 10 a.m. Thursday reporting a vehicle crash at the substation.
The man had communicated with family prior to the crash, referencing self-harm and said he was going to commit an act that would place him on the news. He referred to himself as a terrorist in a message sent to his mother, according to police.
Authorities found explosive materials and multiple books “related to extremist ideologies” in the suspect’s hotel room, McMahill said. The suspect was wearing what police described as “soft-body armor.”
Boulder City is a historic town and is home to the Hoover Dam, which is considered one of the country’s modern civil engineering wonders. The dam provides water to millions of people and generates an average of 4 billion kilowatt-hours of hydroelectric power each year for Nevada, Arizona, and California.
The power substation is owned by the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power.
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