One man has been charged with two counts of attempted murder as the NYPD investigates the attack against three police officers on New Year’s Eve in New York’s Times Square.
The 19-year-old suspect, Trevor Beckford, allegedly came to New York on an Amtrack train a few days before Saturday’s attacks.
According to police, Beckford approached officers on 51st and 8th avenue in Manhattan outside of the security screening zone for people going to see the iconic ball drop on New Year’s Eve.
Using a large knife, Beckford allegedly lunged at all three officers leaving two officers with head wounds including an 8-year veteran and a recent police academy graduate, NYPD Commissioner Keechant Sewell explained during a weekend press conference.
One of the officers fired a shot that hit Beckford in the shoulder during the attack. All three officers have since been released from the hospital.
At the same overnight press conference, Mayor Eric Adams said that one of the wounded officers he had spoken to understood “that his role saved [the] lives of New Yorkers today.”
“As we do a preliminary review of the body cam video, we see how well these officers executed the plan that was put in place by the New York City Police Department in ensuring we protect those who came here to bring in the New Year’s,” Adams said.
FBI Assistant Director Michael Driscoll stressed that there is still an ongoing investigation working through the Join Terrorism Task Force and the NYPD to better understand the attack.
“This is very much an ongoing investigation,” Driscoll said. “I do want to be very clear, as you heard the mayor and the commissioner state earlier, that there is no ongoing threat.”
Days before the attack, the NYPD flagged a potentially “ISIS-Aligned” video calling for “Lone Offender Attacks,” John Miller reports for CNN.
The attack is still being investigated for possible ideological extremism motivation, as reports come out that the suspect’s mother and sister had flagged Beckford’s behavior to the FBI fearing that he had been radicalized by extremist Islamists online.
CNN reports he was then interviewed by the FBI in Main in December after saying he wanted to help fellow Muslims overseas.
The suspect was reportedly carrying a diary that documented his interest in joining the Taliban in Afghanistan and desire to die a martyr.
Elsewhere, in Berlin, Germany, the city saw unexpected aggression towards emergency personnel on New Year’s Eve this year with the fire department reporting 38 separate violent incidents, Herlin Whittle reports for Deutsche Welle.
Fourteen cases involved firetrucks supposedly “lured into ambushes” and pelted with beer crates. A total of 15 emergency responders were injured in Berlin, with one requiring hospital treatment.
