Did the Cybertruck Bomber Have CTE?
In what currently appears to be two unconnected events, two veterans committed acts of terrorism within just a few days.
The Cybertruck bombing, in particular, is notable because the alleged perpetrator was in the US Army special forces. This suggests two things about him:
- He underwent a comparatively rigorous psychological evaluation.
- To the extent that he was exposed to blasts, he would have been more likely to suffer from CTE.
The INVICTA study is currently testing the hypothesis that Special Operations Training is specifically dangerous because of shoulder-fired heavy weapons. Weapons like recoilless rifles and shoulder-fired missiles operate on the backblast principle–blasting propellant from the back of the weapon to fire a projectile from the front of it.
It's suggested that this backblast, close to the operator's head, causes subconcussive injuries that accumulate and eventually lead to CTE.
The perpetrator was 37 years old, only slightly older than the age when CTE symptoms—such as aggression, impulsivity, and suicidal behavior—typically emerge. Since he shot himself in the head and his body was badly burned, a brain autopsy is unlikely to be confirmatory.
However, it’s interesting circumstantial evidence that someone who was initially screened for psychological stability but later underwent training linked to CTE went on to blow himself up at a Trump Hotel in a Cybertruck.