New York attacker screamed 'Allahu Akbar' before driving truck into pedestrians

Reuters photo

New York: A driver in a rented pickup truck mowed down pedestrians and cyclists on a bike path alongside the Hudson River in New York City on Tuesday, killing eight people and injuring about a dozen others in what authorities said was an act of terrorism.

As per media reports, the investigators have found a handwritten note in which the attacker is said to have declared his allegiance to the Islamic State. 

The suspect had been living in Paterson, New Jersey, before the attack, and rented the vehicle in that state before driving it into Manhattan, officials said.

The 29-year-old suspect in Tuesday's attack was shot in the abdomen by police and taken into custody after he crashed the truck into a school bus and fled his vehicle, New York City Police Commissioner James O'Neill told a news conference.

While a source familiar with the investigation identified him as Sayfullo Saipov, O'Neill said police were declining to publicly identify the driver. 

The source would not confirm a CNN report that police believe the suspect is from Uzbekistan and entered the United States in 2010.

Asked at the news conference about reports that the driver shouted "Allahu Akbar" - Arabic for "God is greatest" - O`Neill said a comment by the suspect when he exited his truck and the general circumstances of the assault led investigators to label the incident a "terrorist event."

Governor Andrew Cuomo said the suspect appeared to have acted alone.

"There's no evidence to suggest a wider plot or a wider scheme. These are the actions of one individual meant to cause pain and harm and probably death," Cuomo said at the news conference.

The driver entered the bike path in lower Manhattan at 3:05 p.m., O'Neill said, adding that he was armed with a paint-ball gun and a pellet gun. The suspect was driving a rented pickup from the Home Depot hardware chain, but declined to say where the truck was rented.

Two children and two adults were injured when the truck plowed into the school bus, he said.

Of the eight people killed, six were pronounced dead at the scene and two more were pronounced dead at a nearby hospital, O'Neill said.