NEW YORK (PIX11) – Trevor Bickford, the 19-year-old suspect accused of attacking three NYPD officers with a machete near Times Square on New Year’s Eve, was indicted on multiple terrorism charges Friday.
Bickford was arrested shortly after he allegedly attacked the three police officers at 52nd Street and Eighth Avenue in Manhattan. Bickford hit two officers in the head with a machete before an officer shot him in the shoulder, according to police. Both officers were expected to survive their injuries.
Bickford, a resident of Wells, Maine, may have had ties to radical Islamic extremism. Investigators have been reviewing Bickford’s online postings, which included some mentions of Islamic extremist views, according to a law enforcement official.
The indictment includes the following charges.
- Attempted Murder in the First Degree (3 counts)
- Attempted Murder in the First Degree in Furtherance of an Act of Terrorism (3 counts)
- Assault in the First Degree as a Crime of Terrorism (1 count)
- Assault in the First Degree (1 count)
- Aggravated assault on a Police Officer as a Crime of Terrorism (1 count)
- Aggravated assault on a Police Officer (1 count)
- Attempted Assault in the First Degree as a Crime of Terrorism (2 counts)
- Attempted Assault in the First Degree (2 counts)
- Attempted aggravated Assault upon a Police Officer as a Crime of Terrorism (2 counts)
- Attempted aggravated Assault upon a Police Officer (2 counts)
“We are grateful for our NYPD officers who put their lives on the line every day to keep us safe, as well as our Joint Terrorism Task Force partners,” Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said in a statement. “All eyes are on Times Square on New Year’s Eve and these charges reflect the seriousness of this alleged threat to the safety of our city and our officers.”
Bickford’s New York Supreme Court arraignment is scheduled for Feb. 1.
