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A man attacked three NYPD police officers with a machete on New Years Eve in New York City near Times Square celebrations, injuring two, officials said in an early Sunday morning news conference.
New York Police Department Commissioner Keechant Sewell told reporters Sunday that the suspect, 19, tried to hit an officer with a machete in an unprovoked attack. The man then hit two other officers with the weapon, Sewell added.
One of the officers discharged his firearm, striking the assailant in the shoulder, Sewell said. One officer received a skull fracture and a large cut while another officer received a laceration to the head, she added.
“We are working with our federal partners for this investigation, and it is ongoing,” Sewell said.
There were reports, citing unnamed police sources, that said the suspect was a radical Islamic extremist. The FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force is investigating, an official said at the news conference.
“I want to be clear that the FBI, through the Joint Terrorism Task Force, is working very closely with [NYPD] to determine the nature of this attack,” the FBI’s Michael Driscoll confirmed at the Sunday conference. “And we will run every lead to ground. I also want to be very clear, as you’ve heard said tonight previously, this is very much an ongoing investigation so our ability to talk about specifics is limited.
