The Latest: NYPD official: Beefed-up security for marathon

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NEW YORK (AP) — The Latest on the truck attack on a bike path near the World Trade Center (all times local): 12:30 p.m. A New York Police Department official says beefed-up security at the New York City marathon will include sniper teams, sand truck barricades, and counterterrorism officers.

Chief of Department Carlos Gomez vows that the marathon on Sunday will be a “very safe event.” Gomez said Wednesday that there also will be an abundance of plainclothes officers, bomb dogs and helicopter surveillance. 

Deputy Police Commissioner John Miller says the driver in Tuesday’s deadly bike path attack had been planning the carnage for weeks and did it “in the name of ISIS.”

12:20 p.m.

President Donald Trump is calling the suspect in the New York City deadly truck attack an “animal.”

Trump says he will ask Congress to “immediately” begin work to terminate the Diversity Immigrant Visa Program, which he says was used by the alleged attacker to enter the United States.

Officials have not yet said that was the case.

Trump says “we will take all necessary steps to protect our people.”

Speaking before a Cabinet meeting at the White House, Trump said “all of America is praying and grieving” with the victims.

He says: “Our hearts break for them.”

12:15 p.m.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo says that President Donald Trump’s attack against Sen. Chuck Schumer “plays right into the hands of the terrorists.”

The Democratic governor pointedly condemned Trump’s Wednesday tweets, which criticized Schumer’s immigration policy less than 24 hours after the deadliest terrorist attack in New York City since Sept. 11, 2001.

Cuomo said the president’s tweets “were not helpful.” He added, “You play into the hands of the terrorists to the extent you disrupt and divide … The tone now should be the exact opposite.”

Both Cuomo and New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said Trump had yet to reach out personally.

Trump tweeted that Schumer is “helping to import Europe’s problems.”

He called the visa lottery program that allowed the suspect to enter the country “a Chuck Schumer beauty.”

The program became law under President George W. Bush.

Noon

New York City’s police commissioner says the officer who shot the man responsible for a deadly rampage on a Manhattan bike path is too modest to admit he’s a hero.

Officer Ryan Nash was on a routine call at a nearby school when he and his partner were told there had been an accident outside.

The pair raced outside and encountered Sayfullo Saipov in the street, waving two firearms that were later revealed to be a paintball gun and a pellet gun.

Nash fired a shot that hit Saipov.

Commissioner James O’Neill said of Nash, “I don’t think we could find a more humble human being.”

He said Nash has been on the force for five years and is 28 years old, “and this is what he did for the city, this is what he did for the country.”

11:50 a.m.

A New York police department official says it appears the driver in the deadly bike path attack has links to people who have been investigated.

However, Deputy Commissioner John Miller says the driver himself was never a previous subject of investigation by the FBI or police.

Miller said Wednesday that the man had been planning the attack for weeks and did it “in the name of ISIS.”

He says there were “multiple knives” in addition to imitation guns displayed by the attacker, who was wounded by a police officer. Miller said the driver had handwritten notes that essentially said the Islamic State will “endure forever.”

Eight people were killed and a number of others injured in Tuesday’s attack near the World Trade Center.

11:40 a.m.

A New York Police Department official says the driver in the deadly bike path attack had handwritten notes that essentially said the Islamic State will “endure forever.”

Deputy Commissioner John Miller says the attacker had been planning it for weeks, and had “multiple knives” in addition to imitation guns.

11:30 a.m.

A New York police department official says the driver in the deadly truck bombing had been planning it for weeks and did it “in the name of ISIS.”

Deputy Commissioner John Miller made the remarks at a briefing Wednesday by city, state and federal officials.

He says there were “multiple knives” in addition to imitation guns displayed by the attacker, who was wounded by a police officer.

Hundreds of detectives worked through the night following the Tuesday attack. Among other things, they’ve been “meticulously” collecting security video along the highway that the suspect used before mowing down people on a bike path next to the World Trade Center, killing eight people.

11:15 a.m.

New York City Fire Commissioner Joseph Nigro (NY’-groh) says four people remain in critical but stable condition following the Manhattan truck attack that claimed eight lives.

Nigro and other officials spoke Wednesday at a briefing, one day after an attack along a bike path near the World Trade Center.

Police Chief of Department Carlos Gomez says security enhancements include heavy weapons teams throughout the city.

Mayor Bill de Blasio says victims from other countries will forever be considered New Yorkers.

10:50 a.m.

An Ohio truck driver says the man accused of killing eight people with a truck in New York City was argumentative, seemed to harbor radical views and saw his work life spiraling down.

Mirrakhmat Muminov says Sayfullo Saipov lived in Stow, Ohio, for a few years. He says he knew Saipov because they were both Uzbek truck drivers.

Muminov says Saipov lost his insurance on his truck because of a few traffic tickets. He says companies stopped hiring Saipov, so he left for New Jersey.

Muminov said he heard from Saipov’s friends that Saipov’s truck engine blew up a few months ago in New Jersey. He says that “probably hurt him more than anything.”

Muminov also says Saipov was “not happy with his life” and would get into arguments with his friends and family.

Officials say Saipov left a handwritten note referring to the Islamic State group. Muminov says Saipov never spoke about the group, but he could tell Saipov held more radical views.

10:40 a.m.

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and his Belgian counterpart are vowing to step up counterterrorism cooperation after the New York truck attack that killed eight people, including a young Belgian.

Meeting Belgian Foreign Minister Didier Reynders, Tillerson said Wednesday “we have seen the evil face of terror in our borders.”

Reynders noted previous attacks in Belgium and voiced solidarity with the U.S.

He said “homegrown terrorism” is as real in Europe as the United States. Together, he says, they can combat the global challenge.

10:20 a.m.

FBI agents investigating the Manhattan truck attack have emerged from a Paterson, New Jersey, apartment building with a black plastic bag.

They put the bag in a vehicle on Wednesday, then went back into the cordoned off area where the truck driver lives.

On Tuesday, a man in a rented pickup truck mowed down pedestrians and cyclists along a busy bike path in lower Manhattan, near the World Trade Center, killing eight people.

The Uzbek immigrant who was the truck driver was wounded by police.

9:55 a.m.

Sweden’s Prime Minister Stefan Lofven says the rented pickup that mowed down pedestrians and bicyclists in New York, killing eight and injuring 11 others resembles “very much” the “coward attack” in Stockholm earlier this year.

In April, an Uzbek man, Rakhmat Akilov, drove a stolen beer truck into a crowd of afternoon shoppers outside the upmarket Ahlens store in Stockholm, killing four and injuring 15 others.

Lofven said Wednesday “how a person can take a vehicle and use it to kill innocent fellow human beings is beyond my understanding.”

Lofven told Swedish radio that the world community “must be stronger than terrorism.”

9:40 a.m.

One of the people injured in an attack on a New York City bike path is a native of Argentina who lives just outside Boston.

The Argentine foreign ministry says Martin Marro is recovering from his injuries at a Manhattan hospital.

Several of Marro’s high school classmates from Argentina came to the U.S. to visit him and celebrate the 30th anniversary of their graduation. Five of them died in the attack.

Marro works as a biomedical researcher and lives in Newton. Last week, he hosted a fundraiser for a local Republican candidate that was attended by Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker. Photos of Marro and his wife posing with Baker were posted to Facebook.

Marro’s friend, Tom Mountain, calls him “one of the nicest guys you’d ever want to meet.”

9:30 a.m.

A school next to the New York City bike path where a deadly truck attack occurred is open amid tight security measures.

Stuyvesant (STY’-veh-sehnt) High School says on its website that it’s making crisis counselors available for its students and staff on Wednesday.

It says students must remain in the building during free periods and lunch.

The truck fatally mowed down eight people Tuesday afternoon on a bike path near the school and the World Trade Center site.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo says law enforcers have a note referencing the Islamic State. But he stresses that the investigation is ongoing.

9:20 a.m.

The head of the Arab League has condemned the deadly truck attack on a New York City bike path that killed eight people and injured 11 others.

In a statement Wednesday, Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit expressed his condolences to the U.S. government and the victims’ families.

He also said such incidents place more responsibility on the international community to cooperate in the fight against terrorism.

On Tuesday, a man in a rented pickup truck mowed down pedestrians and cyclists along a busy bike path in lower Manhattan, near the World Trade Center.

9 a.m.

A law enforcement official says investigators are trying to talk to the 29-year-old suspect accused of killing eight people in a truck attack in a bike lane near the World Trade Center and hoping to glean information from him.

The official was not authorized to speak publicly on the ongoing probe and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity. Law enforcement officials identified the suspect as Sayfullo Saipov. They say he came to the U.S. legally from Uzbekistan in 2010.

He was shot once in the abdomen by an officer after he crashed the rented truck into a school bus during the rampage Tuesday afternoon. He underwent surgery and remained hospitalized.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said a note found at the scene referenced the Islamic State and that the suspect had been radicalized in the U.S. He says the contents of the note were under investigation.

Cuomo calls the driver a “depraved coward,” and says the attack “did not instill terror” among hardy New Yorkers.

— Associated Press writer Colleen Long contributed.

8:55 a.m.

The Senate’s top Democrat is hitting back after President Donald Trump faulted him for an immigration program that Trump says allowed the man in the deadly New York City bike path attack to enter the United States.

Chuck Schumer says in a statement that “I have always believed and continue to believe that immigration is good for America.”

The New York lawmaker says Trump is “politicizing and dividing America, which he always seems to do at times of national tragedy.” Schumer says the president should focus “on the real solution — anti-terrorism funding” — an area that Schumer says Trump has proposed cutting in his most recent budget.

Tuesday’s attack killed eight people and injured at least 11.

Trump says on Twitter that the driver “came into our country through what is called the ‘Diversity Visa Lottery Program,’ a Chuck Schumer beauty.”

Officials have said the driver — a native of Uzbekistan — came into the country legally in 2010.

8:40 a.m.

Israel’s prime minister says his country stands with the United States following the deadly truck attack on a New York City bike path.

Benjamin Netanyahu (neh-ten-YAH’-hoo) issued a statement Wednesday addressed to President Donald Trump, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio.

Netanyahu decried “yet another horrible Islamist terror attack” and says Israel prayed for the victims and their families. He says: “Together we will defeat this scourge.”

Israel is one of the United States’ closest allies.

Eight people were killed and at least 11 seriously injured in Tuesday’s truck attack by an Uzbek immigrant near the World Trade Center.

8:10 a.m.

President Donald Trump is calling for “Merit Based immigration” following the deadly truck attack in New York City that killed eight people and injured 11.

Trump says on Twitter on Wednesday that the driver in Tuesday’s attack “came into our country through what is called the ‘Diversity Visa Lottery Program,’ a Chuck Schumer beauty.”

Officials said the attacker is an immigrant from Uzbekistan who came to the U.S. legally in 2010. They haven’t said whether he came in through the Diversity Immigrant Visa Program, which covers immigrants from countries with low rates of immigration to the U.S.

Trump tweeted, “We are fighting hard for Merit Based immigration, no more Democrat Lottery Systems. We must get MUCH tougher (and smarter).”

7:55 a.m.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo says investigators probing the deadly truck attack along a popular bike path near the World Trade Center have a note referencing the Islamic State.

Cuomo stressed Wednesday on “CBS This Morning” that the investigation is ongoing.

Law enforcers are working to determine what led the pickup truck driver to plow down people on the bike path on Tuesday afternoon. The driver is in critical condition after police shot him in the abdomen.

Cuomo calls the driver a “depraved coward,” and says the attack “did not instill terror” among hardy New Yorkers.

7:15 a.m.

France’s prime minister says the deadly truck attack on a New York bike path is a reminder that the threat is high everywhere, and that authorities must remain “as humble as we are determined” to fight extremism.

After checking security measures at the Eiffel Tower on Wednesday, Prime Minister Edouard Philippe said the Manhattan attack shows that “the means used by those who want to hurt us can be of formidable effectiveness, and formidable simplicity.”

Philippe said ordinary people should remain vigilant and not forget “that the threat level is high, and it is high everywhere in the world.” He said authorities should give “credible responses” and focus on intelligence as well as security barriers like those installed around France after multiple deadly attacks.

Eight people were killed in Tuesday’s truck attack by an Uzbek immigrant near the World Trade Center.

7 a.m.

FBI agents and police are searching for evidence in the Paterson, New Jersey, neighborhood where the man suspected of plowing down people on a New York City riverfront bike path lived.

Law enforcement cordoned off an apartment building early Wednesday. Officers also searched a garage.

The building’s manager told The Record that Sayfullo Saipov lived with his wife and two children in a two-bedroom apartment.

The man, who identified himself only as Ali, says he rented the apartment to the 29-year-old several months ago.

A man who identified himself as Saipov’s neighbor told NJ Advance Media he often saw Saipov standing on the corner talking to friends.

The city is home to a large Muslim population and a mosque is near the apartment.

6:55 a.m.

An eerie emptiness hovers over a major New York City traffic artery, one day after a deadly truck attack along a popular bike path near the World Trade Center.

Morning rush-hour traffic has been banned Wednesday along a stretch of the highway in Lower Manhattan. Police helicopters circled overhead.

Some runners and bicycle riders did their best to maintain their normal routines. But police blocked off the bike path north of where the rampage began.

Truck drivers steered clear of the frozen zone to make their morning deliveries.

Investigators worked to determine what led the pickup truck driver to plow down people on the riverfront bike path, killing eight on Tuesday. The driver is in critical condition after police shot him in the abdomen.

6:25 a.m.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry has condemned the truck attack in New York City that killed eight people and seriously injured at least 11, referring to it as a “terrorist” assault.

That’s according to a report Wednesday by the semi-official Fars news agency. It quoted Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Ghasemi.

Ghasemi said in a statement that “a serious approach coinciding with honesty and transparency of all nations” is the only way to “uproot” terrorism.

Ghasemi also expressed sympathy with the relatives of the “innocent” victims of the attack.

Tensions are high between Iran and the U.S. as President Donald Trump recently refused to re-certify the nuclear deal Tehran struck with world powers.

6:15 a.m.

The German government says a German citizen is among the injured in the truck attack on a bike path in New York City.

The Foreign Ministry didn’t identify the female German citizen or give any details about the severity of her injuries in a note on its website Wednesday.

Eight people were killed and at least 11 seriously injured in Tuesday’s attack.

Chancellor Angela Merkel’s spokesman, Steffen Seibert, wrote on Twitter: “Horrified at the evil terrorist #ManhattanAttack. Our hearts go out to the victims + families. From Berlin to NYC: We stand with you.”

5:45 a.m.

Saudi Arabia says it strongly condemns the deadly truck attack in New York City that killed eight people and seriously injured 11.

The kingdom on Wednesday offered its condolences to the families of the victims and reiterated its “rejection and condemnation of such terrorist acts.”

Other Gulf allies have also issued similar statements.

Kuwait’s ruling emir sent a cable to President Donald Trump expressing his condolences.

The United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, meanwhile, issued statements supporting efforts and measures taken by the U.S. to combat terrorism and enhance security.

Earlier, Qatar said it, too, offers its “full solidarity with the U.S. government and its support for all measures taken to maintain security.”

5 a.m.

The president of Uzbekistan has sent his condolences to U.S. President Donald Trump and offered his country’s assistance in investigating Tuesday’s attack in New York by an Uzbek national.

Eight people were killed when a truck plowed down a riverfront bike path near the World Trade Center.

Officials who weren’t authorized to discuss the investigation and spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity identified 29-year-old Sayfullo Saipov as the attacker. They say he came to the U.S. legally from Uzbekistan in 2010.

President Shavkat Mirziyoyev also offered condolences to families of the victims in a statement Wednesday.

Uzbekistan borders Afghanistan and is one of the most closed off post-Soviet republics. Previously, Uzbek officially never commented or acknowledged any security incidents abroad involving Uzbek nationals.

4 a.m.

The Argentine foreign ministry has identified its citizens killed in the bike path attack near the World Trade Center.

They are Hernan Diego Mendoza, Diego Enrique Angelini, Alejandro Damian Pagnucco, Ariel Erlij, and Hernan Ferruchi.

The ministry also says one of its citizens, Martin Ludovico Marro, is recovering from injuries at Manhattan’s Presbyterian Hospital.

The victims were part of a group of friends celebrating the 30th anniversary of their graduation from the Polytechnic School of Rosario, Argentina.

The government gave its condolences and said that all Argentines are sharing in this terrible moment of profound sadness.

12:05 a.m.

Investigators are working to determine what led a pickup truck driver to plow down people on a riverfront bike path near the World Trade Center, killing eight.

New York’s mayor called Tuesday’s attack “a particularly cowardly act of terror.”

The driver is in critical condition after police shot him in the abdomen.

Authorities said after crashing the truck, he brandished air guns and yelled what witnesses said was “Allahu Akbar,” which is Arabic for “God is great.”

Officials who weren’t authorized to discuss the investigation and spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity identified the attacker as 29-year-old Sayfullo Saipov. They say he came to the U.S. legally from Uzbekistan in 2010.

One of the dead is from Belgium and five others were from Argentina.

https://www.mail.com/news/politics/8050650-latest-nypd-official-beefed-up-security-marathon.html#.7518-stage-hero1-1

4 thoughts on “The Latest: NYPD official: Beefed-up security for marathon

  1. You couldn’t PAY me to step into a mass-crowd situation these days (not that I ever felt the need, before), but these are just False Flags waiting for a place to happen, and given ‘they’ are now willing to kill to make it more believable….

    “Stupidity is it’s own reward” ~ My dad

  2. “Miller said Wednesday that the man had been planning the attack for weeks and did it “in the name of ISIS.”

    This took weeks to plan? What, was he waiting on his background check for the airsoft to clear?

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