NEW YORK (AP) — Investigators are trying to determine why a man attacked a group of New York Police Department officers with a hatchet yesterday before they shot him dead.
They’ve obtained a warrant to search the computer of Zale Thompson for clues about yesterday’s daytime assault, which left one officer with a serious head injury.
Police say Thompson’s activity on social media indicated he was a convert to Islam. They say it included rants about injustices in American society and oppression abroad — but it offered no clear evidence of any links to terror groups.
Security video and witness accounts appeared to leave no doubt that Thompson purposely targeted four rookie police officers who were on routine foot patrol in a busy commercial district.
The city’s police commissioner isn’t ruling out terrorism. He cites the deaths of two soldiers in Canada earlier this week, in what officials have called terror attacks, as reason for concern.
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062-a-09-(New York Police Commissioner Bill Bratton, at news conference Thursday at Jamaica Hospital Medical Center)-“with the hatchet”-New York Police Commissioner Bill Bratton says several people were injured when a man with hatchet rushed at a group of police officers. (24 Oct 2014)
< 063-a-13-(New York City Police Commissioner Bill Bratton, at news conference Thursday at Jamaica Hospital Medical Center)-“the armed suspect”-New York City Police Commissioner Bill Bratton says the suspect, armed with a hatchet swung at one officer and then struck another. (24 Oct 2014) < APPHOTO NYR111: In this frame grab taken from video provided by the New York Police Department, an unidentified man approaches New York City police officers with a hatchet, Thursday, Oct. 23, 2014, in the Queens borough of New York. The man injured two with the hatchet before the other officers shot and killed him, police said. A bystander was wounded in the gunfire. Investigators were still trying to confirm the identity of the assailant and determine a motive. (AP Photo/New York Police Department) (23 Oct 2014) < Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
