Harrowing footage shows moment accused bike path terrorist is shot by NYPD cop
New video shows the chaotic moment accused ISIS-inspired terrorist Sayfullo Saipov was confronted and shot by an NYPD officer shortly after he drove a truck into a bike lane off the West Side Highway and fatally mowed down eight people.
The dramatic footage, entered into evidence by federal prosecutors at Saipov’s Manhattan trial, shows the suspect running across the West Side Highway holding what appears to be a pistol in each hand.
As he approaches Chambers Street, Saipov, wearing a blue tracksuit, can be seen pointing the weapons at a responding officer — who unleashes a fusillade of shots, one 7-second video shows.
After a series of bangs, the alleged terrorist drops to the ground.
In his opening statement last week, Assistant US Attorney Alexander Li described the frenzied scene, captured in various videos by onlookers in nearby buildings and from the street.
Li told jurors that Saipov burst out of his rented Home Depot truck after the murderous rampage on Oct. 31, 2017, and waved a paintball gun and a pellet gun around while proclaiming his allegiance to radical Islam.
“Even though his truck was now a smoking ruin in the middle of the intersection, the defendant still was not done,” the prosecutor said.
“He had also brought two fake firearms, which looked real. He grabbed them, and he burst out of the truck screaming ‘Allahu Akbar,’ a celebratory phrase that other ISIS members have also used when conducting terrorist attacks,” Li added.
“A responding NYPD officer ran towards the defendant. The defendant aimed his apparent guns at the officer. The officer fired, hitting the defendant, who went down to the ground,” he went on.
Other still photographs released by prosecutors show the horrific aftermath of the truck attack at the scene of the crime.
The photos show mangled bicycles that were ridden by Saipov’s victims, as well as the Home Depot truck that was nearly completely destroyed when he crashed into a school bus at the end of the attack.
A series of photographs of the bus show the yellow vehicle split open by the impact and mangled, twisted metal caused by the crash.
The suspected ISIS-loving terrorist was rushed to Bellevue Hospital, where he underwent surgery for the wound.
After he recovered from the procedure, Saipov gave an interview with an FBI agent, who testified he smiled about the attack and requested an ISIS flag to hang in his hospital room.
Saipov faces 28 counts for the terror attack and could face the death penalty if convicted.
Source: nypost
