He 'felt good' about NY attack
NEW YORK The Uzbek immigrant behind the New York truck attack confessed to acting in the name of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and "felt good" about the killings, investigators said on Wednesday.
Details emerged as federal prosecutors filed terrorism charges against Sayfullo Saipov, who appeared in court in a wheelchair - he had been shot by police - 24 hours after mowing down people and colliding with a school bus.
The attack killed eight people - five friends from Argentina, a 31-year-old Belgian mother, and two US men.
Of the 12 wounded, four remained in critical condition.
Saipov, who lived in New Jersey with his wife and children, started planning an attack a year ago. He settled on using a truck to kill people during Halloween celebrations two months ago, according to a federal terrorism complaint.
Prosecutors said he waived his rights and confessed to being inspired by ISIS propaganda.
He was found in possession of multiple knives, a Florida driving licence and two mobile phones that contained ISIS propaganda, acting US attorney Joon Kim said.
The files depicted "ISIS fighters killing prisoners by running over them with a tank, beheading them, and shooting them in the face", he added.
"Saipov requested to display an ISIS' flag in his hospital room and stated that he felt good about what he had done," the charging document revealed.
One charge carries a maximum penalty of life in prison, while another would give Saipov the capital punishment if convicted.
The authorities have found a second Uzbek they had been seeking in their investigation - 32-year-old Mukhammadzoir Kadirov. - AFP
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