The driver in a crash that happened just after the ball dropped on New Year’s in Rochester, N.Y., left a journal and suicide note at a local hotel, sources with local law enforcement said.
The crash, which happened at 12:50 a.m. near the Kodak Center where about 1,000 people were leaving a New Year’s Eve concert, was initially being investigated as a possible incident of domestic terrorism.
🚨🇺🇸 BREAKING – TERROR IN NEW YORK | EXPLOSIVE ATTACK THWARTED
Car filled with explosives raced towards a rock concert crowd in Rochester, New York.
Unexpected crash with Uber car halted the explosive-laden Ford Expedition, causing fatal fire; three, including assailant… pic.twitter.com/eOORDT9AM1
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) January 2, 2024
That’s because the driver, Michael Avery, had explosives in his car and drove directly into a crowd.
Yet, on Tuesday, law enforcement sources said they found no link to terror activities.
At a press conference, David Smith, the police chief of Rochester, said that Avery sped a Ford Expedition that he had rented toward a large crowd of people. He ended up crashing his vehicle into an Uber car that was pulling out of a parking lot.
The crash had such force that the vehicles barreled through pedestrians who were walking through a crosswalk and also struck two additional vehicles.
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1616415945560477
The cars then exploded, and fire officials had to fight the blaze for nearly an hour.
A couple who was riding in the Uber vehicle was killed, and the driver of that vehicle had to be rushed to a nearby hospital. Law enforcement officials also said that three pedestrians were hit by the cars, and one was in critical condition.
Avery was initially transported to a hospital with what was life-threatening injuries, and he died later that night.
Police officials said that Avery, who they described as an “emotionally disturbed person,” rented a Rochester hotel room, where a search was conducted. During that search, police recovered his journal as well as a suicide note.
Police investigators are looking into his journal, searching for clues as to why he did what he did. They’re also interviewing relatives and people he knew, and plan to search through a storage unit he was renting in Syracuse.
Law enforcement officials added that Avery rented the extra-large SUV before he headed toward the venue, with the possible intention of killing himself and others.
