Initial Investigation Indicates NYC Truck Driver Linked to IS – State Governor

New York, MINA – Initial investigation indicated that the pickup truck driver who plowed down a New York cycle path, killing eight people was associated with the so-called Islamic State (IS) group, KUNA quoted the state’s governor as saying Wednesday.

The driver, identified as Uzbek national named Sayfullo Saipov, mowed down pedestrians and cyclists over a mile-long stretch of the bike path Tuesday in an exclusive neighborhood of Lower’s Manhattan’s West Side, where children and their parents were preparing to celebrate Halloween.

investigators had determined that the suspect, who reportedly entered the United States in 2010, had since shown an interest in IS and its terror tactics, but that there was no evidence so far that others helped him plot the attack, said New York Governor Andrew Cuomo.

Police shot Saipov, 29, in the stomach at the end of the rampage, but he was expected to survive.

Handwritten notes in Arabic were found near his vehicle, pledging allegiance to the jihadist group, New York Police Department (NYPD) Deputy Commissioner of Intelligence and Counter-terrorism John Miller told a press conference.

According to local media outlets, Tuesday’s attack is the city’s worst since September 11. (T/RS5/RS1)

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)