US President Donald Trump said the Uzbek immigrant accused of killing eight people when he drove a truck down a New York City bike path should get the death penalty. The suspect, Sayfullo Saipov, told investigators he was inspired by watching Islamic State videos and began planning Tuesday's attack a year ago, according to a criminal complaint filed against him on Wednesday.
Donald Trump
Saipov, 29, also said "he felt good about what he had done" and asked for permission to display the flag of the militant group Islamic State in his hospital room, the complaint said. "NYC terrorist was happy as he asked to hang ISIS flag in his hospital room. He killed 8 people, badly injured 12. SHOULD GET DEATH PENALTY!" Trump tweeted late on Wednesday.
Saifullah Saipov. Pics/AFP
Saipov faces two charges, one of which carries the death penalty if the government chooses to seek it, Manhattan acting US Attorney Joon Kim said. The charges are one count of violence and destruction of motor vehicles causing the deaths of eight people and one count of providing material support and resources to a foreign terrorist organization – Islamic State, also known as ISIS. The maximum penalty for the first is death; the maximum for the second life in prison, Kim said.
The FBI said it had located another Uzbek man, Mukhammadzoir Kadirov, 32, wanted for questioning as a person of interest in the attack. US law enforcement officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because the investigation was continuing, said Saipov had been in contact with Kadirov and another person of interest in the investigation.
