Police in NYC attack New Year’s Eve suspect over alleged links to Islamic extremism
Kanishka Sharma
(Reuters) – Three police officers were attacked by a teenager with a machete near Times Square on New Year’s Eve. The incident, which the New York Times linked to Islamic extremism, was brought before New York Police on Monday.
New York City Police Department identified Trevor Bickford (19) of Wells, Maine as the suspect and sent him an email Monday confirming that he was facing two counts each of attempted murder and attempted assault.
The police did not immediately share any further details about future proceedings.
The motive behind the attack was not disclosed by authorities, but the Times reported the suspect was motivated Islamic extremism. An unidentified senior law enforcement official stated that Bickford might face extremism-related charges later.
According to The Times, Bickford converted to Islam in the past year and a quarter.
Police said that Bickford traveled from Maine to New York on Saturday.
New York celebrated the New Year in a typical fashion on Saturday night. Tens of thousands of people lined up in Times Square with pens in pouring rain to watch a glittering ball slide down a pole suspended atop tall buildings in the final seconds.
Officials say the attack took place late in evening outside a protected area that was set up for New Year’s Eve celebrations. Keechant Sewell, Police Commissioner, told reporters shortly after the incident.
Officials confirmed that one of the police officers attacked, who had recently graduated the Police Academy, sustained a fractured skull. All three officers were taken by ambulance to the hospital and released Monday.
The suspect was shot in the shoulder by one of the officers. The suspect was then taken into police custody.
Bickford was transferred to Bellevue Hospital, where he remained until Monday.
The Times reported that Bickford had written a farewell note to his family in a diary before the attack.
According to the newspaper, he wrote his mother in a diary: “I fear greatly that you will not repent before Allah and therefore, I hold hope that a part of you believes so you may be taken from the hellfire.”
Bickford also mentioned his brother in the U.S. army as having worn the uniform of enemy in his diary, according to the newspaper, citing an unnamed law enforcement officer.
(Reporting from Kanishka Singh in Washingtond, editing by Jonathan Oatis