The 19-year-old, who is alleged to have assaulted three police officers with a machete on New Year’s Eve in the vicinity of Times Square, has been accused of two charges of attempting to murder a police officer and two charges of attempting to assault.
According to law enforcement sources, ABC News reported that Trevor Bickford, hailing from Wells, Maine, purportedly assaulted the officers without any provocation after arriving in the city on December 29, 2022, by train. Following his mother’s notification to the FBI regarding her son’s inclination towards Islamic extremism, the suspect was added to a federal monitoring list that should have prohibited him from traveling abroad.
Authorities discovered the backpack of the suspect at the crime scene, which allegedly held a diary, according to sources.
According to the final diary entry, the suspect expressed his belief that he would perish in the assault and requested to be laid to rest in accordance with Islamic customs, as reported by the sources.
ABC News informed authorities that Bickford has provided statements to investigators that bolster the conviction that the assault was driven by Islamic radicalism.
Bickford told police he took a sip of water and shouted “Allahu Akhbar” before attacking the officers with a knife, sources said.
Sources suggest that the purchase and withdrawal were premeditated. Before taking the Amtrak to New York, Bickford also withdrew thousands of dollars in cash at some point, where the knife was purchased in Maine.
According to sources, the knife was reportedly rusty and dull. The sources mentioned that if it had been sharper, the injuries to the officers would probably have been more serious.
According to law enforcement sources, ABC News was informed on Monday that Bickford was interviewed by the FBI and it was established that he intended to journey to Afghanistan in order to engage in combat for the cause. Sources from law enforcement claim that allegedly, Bickford’s mother contacted the FBI last month and alerted them to his inclination towards Islamic extremism.
The ABC News sources revealed on December 29th that there were no obstacles to him getting on an Amtrak train to New York. However, it is alleged that Bickford was added to a federal watchlist that would have hindered his ability to travel abroad.
Upon arriving in New York, the suspect made a substantial cash donation to the Mission Bowery, which satisfied the investigators’ belief in the Muslim principle of charity.
The investigators are interested in whether he had any intention of meeting someone and what motivated him to visit the park in a secluded area of the city, according to sources. The suspect was found with a sleeping bag that was connected to the crime. It is believed that Bickford slept in Forest Park, Queens, starting from that location.
The three officials were discharged from the medical facility on Sunday.
During a press conference on Sunday, New York Police Commissioner Keechant Sewell informed reporters that the incident took place shortly after 10 p.M. On Saturday near West 52nd Street and Eighth Avenue, outside the designated secure zone for New Year’s Eve festivities.
Sewell stated that the assault was “unprovoked” and that Bickford tried to hit one officer on the head with the machete.
“The man then attacked two more officers in the head with the machete,” she stated.
As per Sewell, the individual was subsequently apprehended. One of the law enforcement officers discharged their firearm, hitting the suspect in the shoulder.
Bickford continues to be hospitalized in custody at Bellevue Hospital due to the injuries he sustained when law enforcement officers shot him.
Officials stated that one of the injured officers, an eight-year veteran of the NYPD, sustained a head laceration. This officer’s first assignment in Times Square was to be part of the New Year’s Eve detail, and, as is customary, another officer who recently graduated from the police academy on Friday was also injured.
Authorities stated that the individual who recently arrived was also struck on the head, resulting in a skull fracture and a notable laceration.
Prior to New Year’s Eve, the NYPD had noted that terrorist groups had been mobilizing for a potential New Year’s Day attack.
The report suggests a diverse array of low-tech tactics that the NYPD should employ in advance of New Year’s, urging them to be prepared for a wide range of attacks. The report also highlights the importance of countering the extremist propaganda that pro-ISIS users disseminate through various graphic materials.