I am at a loss of words as to what happened today in New York City. My heart goes out to the families of the victims, those who passed as well as those who were injured. We must stand United against terrorists and protect our country against these people.
God bless America and God bless us all!
Sayfullo Saipov: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know
Sayfullo Saipov, an Uzbek national who drove for Uber, was identified in news reports as the suspect accused of ramming a Home Depot rental truck into people on a bike path in lower Manhattan, killing at least eight and injuring multiple more, in a frightening “act of terror” that unfolded in the shadow of the World Trade Center memorial.
Saipov, who had identification from Tampa, Florida, was more recently living in New Jersey and also drove for Uber this summer, according to a friend. According to CBS News, the terror suspect is “Sayfullo Habibullaevic Saipov, apparently from Uzbekistan,” a central Asian nation. He is an Uzbek national who has been in the United States for seven years, according to NBC and CNN. Online records show he worked as a commercial truck driver and had ties to Ohio as well. According to the New York Post, a friend described Saipov as a “friendly Uber driver.” Although in the country since 2010, possibly on a green card, Saipov had contact with law enforcement in many states for minor traffic violations, showing a mobile life.
The suspect left a note that said he carried out the attack in the name of ISIS, which was found in the truck. He also had a photo of the ISIS flag. New York police and other authorities declined to release the 29-year-old suspect’s name in an early evening press conference after the Halloween afternoon attack, but the mayor publicly and quickly called the car ramming an “act of terror,” and his identity quickly leaked. CNN is reporting that sources say Saipov is not a U.S. citizen. Mostly visitors to New York were those killed in the carnage; five of the deceased victims are from Argentina. They were together on a trip to NYC to celebrate the anniversary of their graduation and were on a bicycle tour.
It might have been even worse were it not for the heroics of a New York police officer, Ryan Nash, 28, who shot the suspect in the abdomen after authorities and witnesses say Saipov leapt from the truck with paintball and pellet guns while shouting “Allahu Akbar.” Saipov, who was captured in dramatic photos with a gun in each hand after crashing into a school bus, is in custody and needed surgery, New York’s top officials confirmed in the press conference. The FBI has taken over responsibility for the investigation and is considering the attack to be terrorism. It was the city’s deadliest terrorist attack since September 11, 2001.
“It looked intentional,” an eyewitness confirmed to CNN, describing the truck hurtling through the busy bike lane, leaving behind crumpled bicycles and bodies with tire trucks visible on them. Pedestrians and bicyclists can see the World Trade Center memorial area as they traverse the popular, and usually peaceful, area where the attack occurred. It’s literally adjacent to the scene where the United States’ worst terrorist attack occurred. Again and again, in their initial comments, New York officials focused on the horrific spectacle of average people just going about their lives, enjoying a beautiful fall day, before being struck down so randomly. Whether the suspect had any ties to ISIS is not yet clear.
“The truth is, New York is an international symbol of freedom and Democracy,” New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said in the press conference, describing the suspect as a likely “lone wolf.” He added, “That also makes us a target from those people who oppose those concepts… We go forward together, and we go forward stronger than ever. We’re not going to let them win.” Be forewarned that some of the videos and photos below are graphic.
1. The Suspect Is an Uzbek National Who Came to the U.S. Only a Few Years Ago & Drove for Uber
Details about the suspect’s background were just unfolding as his name emerged, but it appears that he is a somewhat recent immigrant to the United States. Saipov “is an Uzbek national and came to the U.S. in 2010,” NBC News reported. Although CNN reports that it’s not clear whether he was in the United States lawfully, Fox News reports, though sources, that “the suspect was from Uzbekistan and had a green card. According to The Associated Press, Saipov has a Florida license but may have been living in New Jersey.”
President Trump tweeted that he was stepping up “extreme vetting” for migrants in the wake of the deadly attack. “I have just ordered Homeland Security to step up our already Extreme Vetting Program. Being politically correct is fine, but not for this!” he wrote. The suspect is now out of surgery. “Investigators believe he came to the country legally,” The New York Daily News reported.
Haunting photo of #NYC terror suspect Sayfullo Saipov & rental truck police say he used to carry out attack. Here he is weapons in hand.
According to online records from his traffic history, Saipov has worked as a commercial truck driver. He rented the Home Depot truck in New Jersey the day of the attack, CNN reports. According to The New York Post, Kobiljon Matkarov, 37, a friend of Saipov’s, met him in Florida five years ago and they became friends. “He is very good guy, he is very friendly… he is like little brother… he look at me like big brother,” Matkarov told the Post, adding that Saipov had “been working for Uber and living in New Jersey as recently as this summer.” He said that Saipov gave him a ride to JFK airport in June.
Heavy was at the scene of Saipov’s Tampa, Florida address. Although local media were also at the scene, there did not appear to be any law enforcement activity at the spot, indicating that Saipov might not have lived there anymore. The Tampa angle broke into the news because of the ID Saipov had with him at the scene.
Heavy/Effie OrfanidesThe scene of the suspect’s apartment.
Here’s another photo from the scene:
The location of Sayfullo Saipov’s address in Tampa.
According to a producer for GMA, writing on Twitter, the suspect was “carrying a Florida ID.” Authorities, without giving his name, later said he was 29 and was not from New York, but they would not confirm where he was from. A review of online records does not show much of an obvious social media presence for the suspect, although he did have a Google Plus page with two followers and no photos on it.
The page in his name had check ins at two restaurants from 2012, both in Brooklyn. One was a Russian restaurant and the other a Jewish cafe, according to the Google Plus check in. He appears to have had a Facebook page (which bears only a few photos mostly of cars and nothing obviously alarming). It said he lived in Cleveland, Ohio, and it has now been deleted. The page also said the suspect studied “Moliya,” which means he studied in the area of finance. This was one of the photos on it.
John Williams witnessed the aftermath of the incident. He said in a media interview widely circulated on Twitter, “It was a Home Depot pickup truck. The front was entirely smashed in, and it had smoke coming out of it… and I heard it was an accident with a bus, but I didn’t see the bus. I did see the Home Depot truck… It was definitely totaled.” He added of the disturbing scene: “Right next to the truck was the man laying on the ground and the man getting arrested.”
Videos showed a large police response after reports of shots being fired. The scene of a truck ramming into pedestrians obviously brings to mind ISIS-fueled attacks in Europe in which a vehicle was the modus operandi. The attack fueled panic throughout lower Manhattan, especially due to its location near the World Trade Center site.
2. Sayfullo Saipov Shouted ‘Allahu Akbar’ & Crashed Into a School Bus, Witnesses Reported
Witnesses described the suspect shouting “Allahu Akbar” during the attack, and New York’s mayor called it an act of terrorism, in part because of that utterance. Authorities provided a detailed account, accusing Saipov of mowing down people wantonly who were on the bike path. The attack occurred at 3:05 p.m., when the male suspect began driving southbound, striking a number of pedestrians and bicyclists before colliding with a school bus. The 29-year-old suspect “exited the vehicle brandishing two handguns,” the police commissioner said. A heroic uniformed “police officer confronted the suspect and shot him in the abdomen. A pellet gun and paintball gun were recovered at the scene,” the commissioner said.
The first victim was identified as Ariel Erlij, 48-year-old businessperson from Argentina who was on vacation in New York City.
According to Fox News, four of the injured people were on the bus, and one of the students was in critical condition. They “were riding on a short yellow school bus near Stuyvesant High School,” reported Fox, adding that Belgian and Argentine citizens died in the mayhem. Witness Christiaan Wagener told CNN he heard the truck hitting people and making a “bang, bang, bang” sound as it did so. Children were all around because school was just getting out, he said. “I saw the driver standing next to the truck…guns in both hands,” Wagener said to CNN.
“Loss of innocent life on lower Manhattan. This is a tragedy of the greatest magnitude,” Commissioner James O O’Neill said, opening the first news conference after the attack. He said that an NYPD officer stopped the carnage “moments after it began.” He said the quick response “surely helped save additional lives.”
Mayor Bill DeBlasio said “it’s a very painful day in our city. Horrible tragedy on the west side. Based on the information we have at this moment, this was an act of terror. A particularly cowardly act of terror” against people just going on with their lives not knowing what “would hit them.” DeBlasio said eight were killed and more than a dozen injured. “This action was intended to break our spirit…our spirit will never be broken…we have been tested as a city very near to the site of this tragedy and New Yorkers do not give in to these actions,” the emotional mayor added. “We will respond as we always do. We will be undeterred.”
Sayfullo Habibullaevic Saipov full name of Manhattan terrorist from Uzbekistan goo.gl/3pMEMd #tcot #maga
The mayor added: “I want to ask all New Yorkers, all Americans, to keep the families of those lost in your thoughts, in your prayers.” Cuomo, New York’s governor, noted that people were “enjoying a beautiful fall day and they’re not going to be returning home. Our thoughts and prayers are with all of them.” Cuomo described the attack as perpetrated likely by a “lone wolf” and said there was no evidence to suggest a “wider scheme” but that the evidence points to the “actions of one individual who meant to cause pain and death.”
A witness described the grisly scene with fatally wounded victims on the ground with tire tracks on their bodies. “I hear a loud commotion coming from behind me,” an eyewitness told CNN. “I look and see a truck going down toward Chambers Street. He’s in the bike lane. Clearly in the bike lane….I see two gentlemen laying in the bike lane with tire trucks across their body. You can tell they’re not here anymore. I hear the lady screaming…I hear 9 or 10 gunshots…and all the police came running… they’re just as much confused as I was. They clear the area. I see a yellow school bus that this truck clearly crashed into…Somebody had more than road rage to do something like that.”
Earlier reports had indicated there was gunfire. “A witness told ABC’s New York station WABC that a truck hit multiple people on the bike path on the West Side Highway. The witness added that the truck crashed into a school bus and the driver got out and opened fire,” ABC News reported of the fast unfolding incident on October 31. However, the gunfire came from the heroic police officer stopping the attack. One photo did show a body covered with a white covering.
3. Saipov Has a Minor Traffic History as Online Records Show Him in Multiple States
MugshotSayfullo Saipov.
Although early reports gave his home city as Tampa, Florida, online databases show the suspect having ties to multiple other states. Online records show that the suspect lived in Ohio, but he also has a minor record in Pennsylvania and Missouri, all for traffic offenses. He also has ties to Maryland, according to online record databases, and he once lived in New Jersey, according to the newspaper there. For example, he had a traffic ticket in Missouri for, according to the courts website, “Failed To Equip Mtr Carrier Veh With/Maintain Required Brake System.” (He does show up in Tampa as far back as 2011 in online records.) The latest reports indicate that New Jersey was his most recent home base.
According to NJ.com, “Police stopped Saipov in Mount Holly Springs Borough, Pennsylvania, just south of Carlisle, in March 2015 and gave police a Paterson, New Jersey address, according to court records. He also was stopped in 2012 in Palmyra, Pa., just east of Hershey, and also listed a Paterson address.”
Not gonna share it, but AP has a photo of at least one body covered with a white sheet on a bike path in lower Manhattan
NBC airs footage shot by high school student of purported assailant in Manhattan pic.twitter.com/afmkhaFWZ0
Saipov has a record of multiple traffic offenses in Pennsylvania. In August 2012 he was stopped by state police in Palmyra Township, in Lebanon County, and cited for “out-of-service criteria,” an unlawful activity with a commercial vehicle. State law says “no person shall operate a motor carrier vehicle or cause, permit, require or otherwise allow any other person to operate a motor carrier vehicle in violation of driver out-of-service criteria or standards periodically adopted by the United States Department of Transportation.” He pleaded guilty in November 2012 and was fined more than $500. He was also charged with failure to comply with license restrictions, but that charge was withdrawn.
According to Missouri court records, Sayfullo was stopped by the Missouri Highway Patrol in St. Charles County in 2016 and charged with failure to equip a motor carrier with a required brake system/maintain capable brakes. In April 2016, a warrant was issued for failure to appear. The warrant was served in October 2016 and in November 2016 he pleaded guilty and paid a $129.50 fine and $70.50 in court costs.
He has also been cited in Maryland. On April 21, 2011, he was stopped in Harford County and charged with failure to maintain a driver’s log, a charge that applies to commercial truck drivers.
Emergency personal respond after reports of multiple people hit by a truck after it plowed through a bike path in lower Manhattan.
In March 2015, Saipov was stopped by the Mount Holly Springs Police Department in Cumberland County and charged with operating with unsafe equipment and having a trailer in violation of the maximum allowed length. He pleaded guilty in April 2015 and also paid a fine in that case.
According to Pennsylvania court records, Saipov was living in Paterson, New Jersey, at the time of both of those traffic stops in 2012 and 2015.
The sounds of gunfire in lower Manhattan led some to fear an active shooter or shooting attack was underway. Among those in the area when the attack went down: Singer Josh Groban, who tweeted, “Oh my God I just heart gun shots and ran with my dog. Downtown. F***.”
Witness Andrew Howell told ABC News “he saw a truck plow into two cyclists riding about 20 feet in front of him; he said the impact sent one of the victims straight up into the air, and the man was motionless when he landed back on the ground. The driver then continued at a high speed before crashing.”
4. Saipov Once Owned Businesses in Ohio & Graphic Videos From the Scene Showed Crumpled Bicycles & Injured People
GettyInvestigators inspect a truck following a shooting incident in New York on October 31.
Saipov has registered two businesses in Ohio. He registered Sayf Motors Inc. in Hamilton County in May 2011. The business is located at an apartment on Brisben Place in Cincinnati and the license remains active, state records show.
In August 2013, he registered another active business, Bright Auto LLC. That business is based in an apartment on American Drive in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, records show. Online records show that Bright Auto LLC is an active carrier registered with the U.S. Department of Transportation. The trucking company has one truck and one driver, records show.
Sayfullo Saipov, presunto terrorista de Manhattan, solo tenÃa antecedentes por una infracción de tránsito el año pasado, en Florida pic.twitter.com/wTz5CvvoTE
Asà quedó el vehÃculo usado por el terrorista de Manhattan, que serÃa el uzbeko Sayfullo Saipov (la policÃa logró herirlo y detenerlo). pic.twitter.com/9YW24pFVu0
One graphic video (which you can watch below) showed crumpled bikes and people lying on the pavement in the attack’s aftermath. You can view it below, but be aware that it’s disturbing. The scene was “a few blocks from the World Trade Center Memorial,” Fox reported in one of the first accounts.
A photo taken in August obtained by SITE Intel Group shows an ISIS supporter just blocks away from where Tuesday’s attack took place, although Saipov’s alliances are still being investigated, and authorities have not said publicly that they suspect anyone else as being involved in the plot.
According to National Interest, ISIS has increasingly recruited from Uzbekistan and former Soviet Republics. “ISIS operatives from Central Asia have been implicated in the Ataturk Airport and Reina Nightclub attacks in Istanbul.The June airport attack was carried out by a Chechen, a Kyrgyz and an Uzbek, ostensibly trained by ISIS,” the site reported.
Here's @RCallimachi explaining the particular influence has in the former Soviet republics (like Uzbekistan).
“Currently, Turkish authorities suspect a Kyrgyz or Uzbek as the shooter in the Reina New Year tragedy. ISIS has claimed responsibility for that attack and declared war on Turkey. Although it is impossible to confirm how many Kyrgyz, Uzbeks and other Central Asians are fighting for ISIS in Turkey and Syria, The Diplomat reports that most are used for suicide missions.”
National Interest noted, “The Soviet collapse led to the last phase of the Afghan Civil War and the outbreak of conflict in Tajikistan, hostilities that spawned the Taliban and the lesser known Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU). The IMU’s stated goal was the replacement of the Karimov regime in Uzbekistan with an Islamic caliphate ruled from the Fergana Valley.” According to CNN, “There are two large jihadi groups in the country. One of them is the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, which is affiliated with ISIS.”
5. Saipov Was Married With Children & New Jersey Neighbors Didn’t Notice Anything Strange
Neighbors where Saipov was most recently living in New Jersey didn’t notice anything amiss. According to NJ.com, “A man who said he was Saipov’s neighbor and did not want to be identified said he often saw the suspect around the neighborhood with his wife and two children. He also said he saw Saipov standing on the corner talking to friends and frequently invited them into his home.”
That’s quite a contrast from the horrors perpetrated on the streets of Manhattan on October 31. A witness, Ramon Cruz, told CNN: “What I saw was that the driver — he didn’t look like he was bleeding. He was dragging his foot. He looks frustrated, panicked, confused. People are running past me, saying, ‘He’s got a gun. He’s got a gun.’ I didn’t see any gun.”
A short time after news of the attack broke, President Donald Trump took to Twitter to express outrage. “We must not allow ISIS to return, or enter, our country after defeating them in the Middle East and elsewhere. Enough!” Trump tweeted. He also wrote, “In NYC, looks like another attack by a very sick and deranged person. Law enforcement is following this closely. NOT IN THE U.S.A.!”
President Trump tweets about NYC attack, saying it "looks like another attack by a very sick and deranged person" cnn.it/2htZDgV
The identities of the victims and more information about their lives have not yet been released, although this article will be updated with names and other information when they are. You can read more details about the incident here:
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Please!… no emails!… Jesus is Lord!
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Please!… no emails!… Jesus is Lord!
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P.S.: Unless this C-O-W-A-R-D-L-Y breach of Digital Human Rights is REPENTED OF, AND R-E-S-C-I-N-D-E-D, my words– IN THE SPIRIT OF MY LORD AND SAVIOUR, JESUS CHRIST!– W-I-L-L S-T-A-N-D! You WILL either live by G-O-D-‘-S C-O-M-M-A-N-D to live by HIS DICTATES, or, you WILL SUFFER His punishment!
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Please!… no emails!… Jesus is Lord!