A 23-year-old man identified by law enforcement as Dawson Maloney is dead after he allegedly rammed a power substation outside of Las Vegas around 10 a.m. on Thursday and then committed suicide.
Law enforcement recovered two shotguns, a pistol, ammunition, flamethrowers containing thermite, and a cell phone from the vehicle, according to a press conference.
Police shared video of the man driving a silver Nissan Sentra through a power station gate until he rammed into large industrial wire reels, Las Vegas Metro Police Sheriff Kevin McMahill said in a press conference.
“Given the location and the material discovered, this incident was treated as a terrorism-related event," McMahill said.
Law enforcement said that they recovered books that contained extremist ideologies, including left and right-wing extremist ideologies, environmental extremism, white supremacy, and anti-government ideology.
The New York man apparently rented a vehicle and drove cross-country to Boulder City, Nevada.
LVMPD and FBI to Provide Details of a Counter Terrorism Incident outside Boulder City https://t.co/S9fovJWtd1
— LVMPD (@LVMPD) February 20, 2026
Las Vegas Metro police shared these surveillance videos of Dawson Maloney crashing into a power substation's fence. Maloney, who is from the Albany, New York, area, died by suicide. https://t.co/EUBegM2ZYg https://t.co/0EeS57voIX pic.twitter.com/oiBsZ9S2A7
— David Charns (@davidcharns) February 20, 2026
The man had been reported missing out of New York and had told a family member that he planned to harm himself and would do something to place him “on the news,” McMahill said.
Maloney apparently referred to himself as a dead terrorist son.
#BREAKING TERRORISM UPDATE – JOINT INVESTIGATION
— LVMPD (@LVMPD) February 20, 2026
LVMPD Sheriff Kevin McMahill was joined this afternoon by Chief Timothy Shea of the Boulder City Police Department and Special Agent in Charge Chris Delzotto of the FBI Las Vegas Field Office to provide an update regarding a… pic.twitter.com/8cC7huYthL
BREAKING: There is new information on the man who intentionally rammed his vehicle into a power facility near Boulder City, Nevada, before fatally shooting himself in the head.
— AZ Intel (@AZ_Intel_) February 20, 2026
- The suspect had recently been reported missing out of New York, and he had communicated with family… pic.twitter.com/s9j9dhJDKHMaloney apparently targeted a power facility that works with the Hoover Dam, McMahill said.
#BREAKING: 1 killed in Boulder City, Nevada, from suspected terror attack.
— Insider Wire (@InsiderWire) February 20, 2026A man armed with multiple guns, explosives, and a flamethrower rammed his car into a power substation in Boulder City — about 30 minutes outside of Las Vegas — yesterday morning.
— Las Vegas Locally 🌴 (@LasVegasLocally) February 20, 2026
LVMPD and the FBI have labeled it a "terrorism-related event." pic.twitter.com/vgnMR2RMg4