Fact Check

Did a Female Killer in Las Vegas Shout 'Allahu Akbar'?

A female driver accused of intentionally running down multiple pedestrians in Las Vegas did not shout "Allahu Akbar" during the incident.

Kim LaCapria

Published Dec. 21, 2015

Claim:
A driver in Las Vegas shouted "Allahu Akbar" as she deliberately struck multiple pedestrians with her vehicle, and police have been instructed to suppress that detail of the story.
Rating:
False
False

About this rating

On 20 December 2015 a female driver (later identified as a 24-year-old Oregon woman named Lakeisha Holloway) reportedly struck multiple pedestrians with her vehicle on the Las Vegas strip. One individual, 32-year-old Jessica Valenzuela, died in the accident:

On 21 December 2015, the notoriously unreliable web site Before It's News published an article reporting that Holloway had shouted "Allahu Akbar" (Arabic for "Allah is great") during the incident:

According to one eye witness "As we were walking across the street, this car comes flying through the red light. She ran up on the sidewalk and smashed into a group of people walking accross the street and into the group of people at the corner. She did not slow down and appeared to accelerate as she hit the sidewalk." According to that witness. there is a huge row of plants and bushes separating the sidewalk and the strip, but the woman driver ran through both, at a speed he guessed to be 40-45 miles per hour. "People were flying off the front of her car and people were smashing into other people as she plowed through the crowd." The witness went on to say "As this unfolded, the only thing I recall as this happened is the insane sound of her car accelerating and the voice from the car was screaming 'Allah Akbar!' I've heard the sound enough times on the news that I was waiting for a bomb to blow up or guns to start firing." This was an act of Islamic Terrorism, perpetrated by an Islamic woman driving a car with a three year old child inside, who INTENTIONALLY rode onto the sidewalk to strike innocent people. Police, however, have been instructed by their superiors to NOT use the word "terrorism" in relation to this incident, because Las Vegas does not want tourists to be frightened away from the city.

The claim appeared concurrently on numerous questionable websites (all with identical wording), but we found no version of that claim reported by a credible news site. Although Las Vegas police didn't release any specifics about what motive might have been behind Holloway's deadly actions, media reports hinted at a non-terroristic impetus:

On 21 December 2015, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) issued a press release [PDF] about the incident which stated that:

About 30 minutes after the initial incident was reported, an adult female, later identified as 24-year old Lakeisha Holloway, went to the valet area of the Tuscany Hotel located at 255 East Flamingo Road, and asked an employee to call the police. It was believed Holloway was involved in the incident on the Strip and she was taken into custody without incident. A three-year old female was in the vehicle with Holloway who was believed to be her daughter. The child was uninjured and was turned over to Child Protective Services where they will assist in locating other family members.

The investigation indicated this incident was intentional and as a result of the investigation initiated by multiple details of the LVMPD, Holloway was arrested and Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department transported to the Clark County Detention Center where she currently faces the following charges:

- Murder with a Deadly Weapon
- Child Abuse or Neglect (felony)
- Leaving the Scene of an Accident (felony)

Once the remaining victims' statements and medical records are put together, it is anticipated that Holloway will face a multitude of other charges.

LVMPD published video of a press conference to Facebook on 21 December 2015:

We were unable to confirm that any witnesses reported Holloway as shouting "Allahu Akbar" during the incident, and we found no witness reports stating such posted in social media prior to the publication of articles claiming that she had. Those articles may have been inspired by a thread on the conspiracy board "God Like Productions" titled "I was hit by crazy Islamist bitch screaming Allah Ahckbar on the Strip! Best friend got knees clipped!," where a comment stated:

Just heading to Absinthe; the show at Ceasars Palace. Was walking down the strip heading to our show; as we parked at the Paris for dinner and walked down the street to go to the show. As we were walking accross the street, this car comes flying through the red light, we had right of way and walking accross the intersection, she ran up on the sidewalk and smashed into a group of people walking accross the street and into the group of people at the corner. She did not slow down and appeared to accelerate as she hit the sidewalk. There's a huge row of plants and bushes seperating the sidewalk and the strip, she ran through both, probably 40-45 miles per hour. People were flying off the front of her car and people were smashing into other people as she plowed through the crowd. My friend was walking ahead of us as he was making a joke of the minion characters that were lined up on the sidewalk, wanted to pose for a picture, the car hit a bush and the bush smacked into his legs; he buckled from the impact and fell down in writhing pain. He is listed as one of the 36 injured but I will not name his name. We spent the last 5 hours on the strip giving our report to police and this is the first chance I've had to come on here and post. I've been following this story HERE as I know this is the only place to get the REAL news!

As this unfolded, the only thing I recall as this happened is the insane sound of her car accelerating and the voice from the car was screaming Allah Akbar! I've heard the sound enough times on the news and posts on here that I was waiting for a bomb to blow up or guns to start firing. My friends ducked into the Hard Rock Casino which is right by the Paris and waited to see if something else was going to happen. After 30 minutes we went back to the street with total chaos, cops and ambulances shutting everything down and a systematic closure of casinos closely. We were told to leave if able, and not to linger but more and more people gathered to see what was going on.

I thought this shit wouldn't hit Vegas but I am first hand proof that's it's here, in Sin City with evil Islam at its roots! This bitch was crazy and was screaming with both windows down! I didn't notice a kid in the car but after reading the news that a toddler was in there it makes me sick!

I'm coming down from an adrenaline rush like I've never had. I'm ex-Air Force and I wish I was active duty so I could FRY these fuckin radicals from my country! Watch yourselves people; they come out of no-where and will hit you where you least expect it! I don't think it's a coincidence it was in front of the Paris either, fuck these fucking terrorists!!

Our attempts to contact the official public information department of the LVMPD have so far been unsuccessful, probably due to the large ongoing investigation into the Vegas strip incident of 20 December 2015. However, an individual in the Homicide division with whom we briefly spoke confirmed that potential ties to Islamic terrorism are not currently a focus of the investigation. The rumor's credibility deficit was so severe that even an InfoWars article described it as "from a dubious source [which] cannot be considered genuine at this time."

On 21 December 2015, the LVMPD repeatedly addressed iterations of the rumor on Twitter and implored social media users not to spread misinformation about the tragedy:

By Kim LaCapria

Kim LaCapria is a former writer for Snopes.