The suspect in the machete attack near Occasions Sq. on New Year’s Eve wanted to enroll in the Taliban, consistent with a CNN report on Monday.
Trevor Bickford, 19, “carried a handwritten diary that expressed his need to sign up for the Taliban in Afghanistan and die as a martyr,” in line with the outlet, citing “legislation enforcement sources.”
Bickford is in custody, although he has now not yet been charged, and is being treated at a clinic. He was shot at by a police officer outdoor a screening zone for the New Year’s Eve celebration in Instances Sq.. Three officers had been injured in the attack.
According to CNN:
Investigators on Sunday have been in the hunt for search warrants for the suspect’s cellphone and on-line activities to resolve if he had been viewing violent extremist propaganda, legislation enforcement sources stated.
The NYPD had despatched a bulletin Friday to regulation enforcement partners throughout the united states of america titled, “ISIS-Aligned Media Unit Releases Video In advance of New Yr’s Eve, Demanding Lone Offender Assaults,” according to the sources. The video, being circulated in on-line chat rooms, presentations “chosen video clips, suggesting various method of attack, including explosives, handguns, knives, and toxins,” in line with the bulletin, got by way of CNN.
It’s not clear if the checkpoint attack suspect has considered terrorist propaganda. The techniques appear to follow a well-known model of prior attacks in opposition to New York City with the aid of lone offenders.
Watch above by way of CNN.
The put up Suspect in Machete Attack Near Occasions Sq. on New Yr’s Eve Wished to Sign up for Taliban: Record first seemed on Mediaite.