New Year’s Eve Deadly Machete Attack

(AmericanProsperity.com) – Tragedy struck Times Square on New Year’s Eve when 19-year-old Trevor Bickford attacked police officers with a rusty machete. One responder’s quick actions ensured the attacker didn’t kill anyone, but two of the hero’s colleagues suffered minor injuries before they could subdue the assailant. The suspect reportedly became radicalized after converting to Islam.

Suspect in Machete Attack Near Times Square on New Year's Eve Wanted to Join Taliban: Report https://t.co/AbKleekTE4

— Mediaite (@Mediaite) January 2, 2023

Bickford allegedly began his attack by striking with the weapon’s blunt handle, reported Breitbart, but he turned the blade on two of the police officers. Louis Iorio, a veteran on the force, endured a cut to the head. Paul Cozzolino, who had recently graduated from the police academy and was on his very first shift as a law officer, sustained a slice to the head as well as a fractured skull. Doctors treated and released both at a local hospital on January 1.

The suspect’s mother had put Bickford on the federal radar the previous month when she told authorities he wanted to travel to Afghanistan. She feared he planned to join the Taliban. NY Daily News stated that the young man seemed to exhibit personality changes after his father died from a drug overdose, but the boy only recently experienced a radical shift. He reportedly took issue with the treatment of Muslim groups in Myanmar and China and wanted to die as a martyr for his religion. For whatever reason, the NYPD never received the memo.

Police recovered the suspect’s diary, in which Bickford reportedly said goodbye to his mother in anticipation of dying in the attack. He also allegedly expressed sadness over the rest of his family refusing to convert to Islam alongside him and that his brother served in the US military, apparently making him an enemy.

Bickford suffered a gunshot wound to the shoulder after one of the officers on the scene opened fire. The suspect faces charges of attempted assault and attempted murder, but a judge won’t arraign him until after the hospital releases him. Bickford is currently in stable condition.

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