8 people were killed and 11 seriously injured in a Oct 31st afternoon attack that the mayor called “a particularly cowardly act of terror.”
The driver identified by officials as an immigrant from Uzbekistan was in critical condition but expected to survive after a police officer shot him in the abdomen.
Officials who were not authorized to discuss the investigation and spoke on the condition of anonymity identified the slight, bearded attacker as Sayfullo Saipov, a 29-year-old who came to the U.S. legally in 2010. He has a Florida driver’s licence but may have been staying in New Jersey.
Authorities informed that the investigators worked through the night to determine what led a truck driver to plow down people on a riverfront bike path near the World Trade Center in New York City, brandishing air guns and yelling “God is great” in Arabic as his deadly route of terror ended with a crash.
Police said the attacker rented the truck at about 2 p.m. ET at a New Jersey Home Depot and then went into New York City, entering the bike path about an hour later and speeding toward the World Trade Center, the site of the deadliest terror attack in U.S. history.
He barrelled along the bike path in the truck for the equivalent of about 14 blocks, or around 1.2 kilometres, before slamming into a small yellow school bus.
Authorities were scrutinizing a note found inside the attacker’s rented truck, according to two law enforcement officials who were not authorized to discuss the ongoing investigation and spoke on the condition of anonymity.
The attack has highlighted a strategy that the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria group (ISIS) has been suggesting to its followers. While police didn’t specifically blame any group for the strike, U.S. President Donald Trump railed against ISIS and declared.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he was “deeply grieved” by the attack and offered condolences on behalf of all Canadians to those mourning the loss of family members and friends. He also offered wishes for a full recovery to those who were injured.
