8 Dead & 15 Wounded: Inside The ISIS Terror Attack That Shocked NYC
Nov. 1 2017, Published 12:31 p.m. ET
This Tuesday at around 3:00 pm in New York City, a Home Depot truck crashed into a crowd of people in lower Manhattan. The driver, now believed to be Uzbek man Sayfullo Habibullaevic Saipov, 29, got out of the vehicle after the collision and began shooting at innocent bystanders. Eyewitness, Thibaud Roy, claimed the shooter ran towards a crowd of children before opening fire. As of now, it is believed the criminal took the lives of eight and injured at least 15. Click through RadarOnline.com's gallery to learn more.
The NYC truck driver waved a paintball gun in one hand and a pellet gun in the other when running through the crowd after the crash. Officer Ryan Nash, 28, shot him in the abdomen, after which he was taken into a local hospital for surgery. Officials are now waiting for him to wake up before questioning him about his crime.
The terrifying incident is believed to have been a "cowardly act of terror," according to NYC Governor Andrew Cuomo.
According to DailyMail investigators found images of ISIS flags inside the man's truck as well as handwritten notes pledging his alliance to the terrorist group.
"ISIS lives forever," said a note, according to NBC Philadelphia. Many of the man's notes were written in Arabic, while a few were also written in English.
According to reports, the man had been living in the United States since 2010 and had previously been a truck driver as well as an Uber driver. Sources close to him claimed he was just a friendly, ordinary man who loved to play with children. Others, however, said he had anger issues and often got into senseless fights around his New Jersey neighborhood.
"New York is an international symbol of freedom and democracy," said NYC Mayor Bill De Blasio, "that also makes us a target for those people who oppose those concepts, and we've lived with this before. We've felt the pain before, we feel the pain today, but we go forward together and we go forward stronger than ever."
A group of former school mates from Argentina – who had come to NYC for their High School reunion – were among the deceased. A child who was walking with his classmates in the area is also in critical condition.
Actor Josh Groban was one of the first people to alert authorities and media about the incident. "Oh my god I just heard gun shots and ran with my dog. Downtown. F**k," tweeted the star. "I'm shaking. That's the corner I was supposed to have my coffee but my dog pulled me into the park half a block away 10 min before shooting." Stay with RadarOnline.com for updates.
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