A note left on an iPhone has revealed a possible reason why Matthew Livelsberger blew himself and a Cybertruck up in front of Donald Trump’s hotel in Las Vegas this week.
The 37-year-old Green Beret, who the FBI says suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder, said he had “no animosity” for Trump and that the explosion was “not a terrorist attack.”
However, Livelsberger made it clear that he was unhappy with the state of the country.
“This was not a terrorist attack, it was a wake up call,” he tweeted. “Americans only care about spectacles and violence. What better way to make my point than a stunt involving fireworks and explosives?”
His apparent point was that the United States, the “best country people (sic) to ever exist,” are “terminally ill” and on the verge of “collapse.”
“Fellow Service members, Veterans, and all Americans, TIME TO WAKE UP!” Livelsberger wrote. “We are being led by weak and feckless leadership who only serve to enrich themselves.”
Because of the timing and apparent symbolism of the explosion, some speculated that he chose a Cybertruck—Elon Musk’s crown jewel of a vehicle—and blew it up in front of a Trump hotel to protest the president-elect and his new top ally.
However, Livelsberger’s note paints a different—and possibly more ambiguous—picture.
“Why did I personally do it now?” he wrote. “I needed to cleanse my mind of the brothers I’ve lost and relieve myself of the burden of the lives I took.”
The New Year’s Day blast injured seven bystanders, but Livelsberger was the only one who died.
According to a law enforcement source who spoke with the Daily Beast on Thursday, Livelsberger’s family informed investigators that he was a “big” Trump fan who voted for him in November. Another report from The Independent confirmed this, with his uncle stating that his nephew “loved Trump” and was “a very, very patriotic soldier, a patriotic American.”
More information about Livelsberger emerged later Thursday, including a report that his second wife had left him just days before he committed suicide.
A police update on Friday afternoon included several photos of Livelsberger, including a partially burned passport, as well as screenshots of him at charging stations between his hometown of Colorado Springs and Las Vegas.
Livelsberger put a handgun in his mouth and pulled the trigger right before the rented Cybertruck exploded. The FBI said Friday that the vehicle was never put in self-driving mode, seemingly putting an end to conspiracy theories that Livelsberger was set up and killed before arriving at the Trump International Hotel.
Livelsberger’s LinkedIn profile showed that he served in the military for 19 years, including a stint in Afghanistan. He was most recently based in Germany, but had returned to the United States on approved leave.
Livelsberger’s ex-girlfriend told The Washington Post that he suffered a traumatic brain injury while deployed overseas, resulting in “a cloudy memory, poor concentration, difficulty maintaining relationships, and intense guilt over his actions on the battlefield.”
