Suspect’s communications are under scrutiny

Trump calls for use of death penalty after rampage

Investigators continued Thursday to probe the 29-year-old Uzbek immigrant charged with the New York truck attack, poring over his communications to see whether he had any help before the deadly rampage, while President Donald Trump publicly weighed in on the federal prosecution of the suspect.

New York police officials say that the attacker appears to have self-radicalized and that it does not appear anyone else was involved, though they said that continues to be a key question in the international investigation launched after the Halloween attack in lower Manhattan killed eight people and wounded a dozen others.

Authorities are trying to determine whether Sayfullo Saipov, who was charged Wednesday with providing support to a terrorist group, only drew inspiration from the Islamic State and its calls for adherents to attack using vehicles, or whether he was enabled in some way, which so far does not seem to be the case, officials said.

A key difference in this case compared with past attacks is that Saipov, who was shot by a police officer after crashing his truck into a school bus, was taken into custody alive.

“When you capture a live terrorist, you have the ability to question that person and you’re able to glean a lot about those things,” John Miller, the deputy commissioner of intelligence and counterterrorism with the New York City Police Department, said Thursday on CBS This Morning. “Were they part of a larger network? Is this something bigger? Were they acting alone?”

Saipov could also offer information to authorities helpful beyond his case, because a suspected terrorist in custody also lets investigators delve more deeply into “the arc of their radicalization,” Miller said.

“What we’re seeing today is, in the United States, a great deal of that is just done online,” he said.

In court documents, authorities depicted Saipov as a man who plotted carefully and was proud of the carnage inflicted upon pedestrians and bicyclists Tuesday afternoon.

Officials said Saipov told them he wanted to kill as many people as he could, picking Halloween because he thought more people would be outside, according to the criminal complaint.

Trump tweeted hours after Saipov was charged that he “SHOULD GET DEATH PENALTY!” On Thursday, Trump backed away from his suggestion a day earlier that he could send Saipov to the U.S. military prison at Guanta- namo Bay, Cuba, writing that there was “something appropriate about keeping him in the home of the horrible crime he committed.”

He added, though, that the case “should move fast” and again called for the death penalty, which could create a hurdle for federal prosecutors in the case. One of the charges against Saipov could carry a potential death sentence, although the Justice Department has not said whether it will pursue that. If they do, defense lawyers could argue that Trump’s tweets may prevent a jury from giving Saipov a fair trial.

David Patton, Saipov’s defense attorney, declined to comment on Trump’s tweets. In a statement released before the president’s comments, Patton said: “In a case like this involving so much tragedy, it’s more important than ever to let the judicial process play out. How we as a society treat Mr. Saipov will say more about us than it will about him.”

Saipov was charged Wednesday in a criminal complaint, though authorities will eventually ask a grand jury to indict him, and he could face additional charges. His next court appearance is scheduled for Nov. 15, though that is likely to change after an indictment is filed.

During a speech Thursday morning in New York City that was scheduled before the truck attack, Attorney General Jeff Sessions seemed to offer a subtle hint to the president that terrorism suspects can face justice in federal courts.

But Sessions, a vocal supporter of using the military prison at Guantánamo Bay, also made mention of the facility there.

Sessions, who attended a roll call Thursday with officers, also heaped praise on the New York Police Department, in particular the officer who shot and wounded Saipov.