FBI: New Orleans suspect used Meta smart glasses to prep for truck attack

The man behind the truck attack in New Orleans on New Year’s Day that killed 14 people prepared for the assault by visiting the city twice before and recording a video with Meta smart glasses, the FBI has said.

According to the officials, Shamsud-Din Jabbar – who killed 14 people before being fatally shot by police in New Orleans’ historic French Quarter – went to the city twice before the attack, in October and November.

In October, said Lyonel Myrthil, FBI special agent in charge of the New Orleans Field Office, Jabbar used glasses from Meta, the parent company of Facebook, to record video as he rode through the French Quarter on a bicycle.

Meta glasses appear to look like regular glasses, but they allow the user to record photos and videos hands-free. They also allow the user to potentially livestream their video.

In a video shared by the FBI, Jabbar’s recorded footage shows him cycling slowly through the French Quarter, taking care to look around and possibly map an escape route. In another short clip, Jabbar is seen looking at the mirror and testing the Meta glasses.

The smart glasses, announced by Meta in 2023, allowed the suspect to capture detailed footage of the area without attracting attention.

“Jabbar was [also] wearing a pair of Meta glasses when he conducted the attack on Bourbon Street. But he did not activate the glasses to livestream his actions that day,” said Myrthil, adding that the glasses were recovered from the suspect after he was killed.

Made in partnership with Ray-Ban, Meta smart glasses are AI-powered frames with speakers and a built-in camera. They can be controlled with your voice, buttons, and simple gestures.

The glasses connect to Meta’s AI assistant to see what you’re seeing and answer simple questions. Essentially, the user talks to the wearable, and it replies.

These are not augmented-reality smart glasses, which usually have a display built into the lens and a viewfinder for framing photos or videos. But Meta has said it was working on frames just like that, called Orion.

Also, the Meta Ray-Ban glasses have an LED privacy indicator that allows bystanders to know when they’re shooting video or taking pictures. According to Meta, the light cannot be disabled.