Manhattan attacker Sayfullo Saipov’s past is checkered with future indicators of his terrorist attack on pedestrians Tuesday.
Saipov is a legal permanent resident from Uzbekistan who has resided in the U.S. since 2010. He attacked and killed eight civilians and injured a dozen more Tuesday.
He reportedly left notes in the truck he used to plow through pedestrians that declared his allegiance for the Islamic State and has reportedly told investigators he is “proud” of his work, wishing only he had run over more people.
He was also questioned by federal authorities in 2015 after being listed as a point of contact by two men on a terror watchlist, but was never the subject of a counter-terrorism investigation himself.
NEW: NYC suspect was interviewed in 2015 by federal agents after being listed as point of contact for two men on counterterrorism list. pic.twitter.com/Q8GjUk9o3S
— ABC News (@ABC) November 1, 2017
The terrorist reportedly berated cashiers at his local supermarket and discriminated his hatred towards them based on whether they were wearing a hijab or not.
“I feel like he was prejudice to the cashiers — whether they were covered or not in a hijab — he would belittle them,” the manager of the supermarket told The New York Post. “He would get angry very fast…. he would break the cans, dumb things.”
Violent or erratic outbursts and past contact with law enforcement in relation to a counter-terrorism investigation are classic red flags in backgrounds of terrorists in the U.S. homeland. Saipov also showed signs of radicalization years prior to his attack.
An Uzbek friend of his told The New York Post Saipov refused to take a photo with his young son in June, a practice common among extremely devout Muslims. Police booking photos of Saipov from 2013 also show a long beard, also common among devout Muslims.
Note about ISIS found in truck used in NYC terrorist attack, sources say https://t.co/spSaPVr9T0 pic.twitter.com/Sbtgd2jH26
— NBC News (@NBCNews) November 1, 2017
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