US President-elect Donald Trump linked Wednesday’s deadly truck attack on a crowd of revelers in New Orleans to illegal immigration — the issue at the heart of his election victory.

“When I said that the criminals coming in are far worse than the criminals we have in the country… it turned out to be true,” Trump posted on social media. Police have not indicated the nationality or identity of the attacker.

Trump also claimed that the nation’s crime rate “is at a level that nobody has ever seen.” In fact, violent crime is sharply down across the country, according to the FBI. (AFP)