NEW YORK — The Department of Justice said that an attack on NYPD officers in June was an act of Islamic terrorism by an illegal alien using the protests as cover.
The claims were made in an affidavit unsealed on Wednesday in a Brooklyn court.
Two police offers were patrolling to prevent looting on June 3 on a street corner when a man suddenly stabbed one officer in the neck at about 11:45 p.m., nearly four hours after a curfew that was imposed at the time. He chased after the other officer and then returned to attack the first, according to the DOJ press release.
That man then allegedly stole a 9mm service weapon from one of the officers and shot at other officers who were responding to the altercation, The Blaze reported. Two officers were wounded in the hand.
Police said the suspect yelled “Allah Akbar” several times during the attack.
The attack was caught on surveillance video that was released to the public by the NYPD:
As a result of the attack, responding officers shot the man and took him into custody. The suspect survived the shooting, but was listed in critical condition at the time.
The affadavit identified the suspect as Dzenan Camovic, a 20-year-old Bosnian national who was present illegally in the United States, The Blaze reported.
U.S. Attorney General Bill Barr noted that Carnovic had been in possession of extremist materials, including some related to ISIS.
“We know that Camovic repeatedly yelled, ‘Allahu Akbar’ during his attack. We know that he possessed a significant volume of materials that demonstrates his interest in and support for violent Islamist extremism, including materials related to the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS),” said Barr.
Moreover, the attorney general said Carnovic took steps to conceal evidence of his plans and whatever co-conspirators he may have had.
“If not for the heroism and bravery of the responding NYPD officers who returned fire and took the assailant down early in the attack, untold additional officers and innocents could have been killed or injured,” according to Barr.
Consequently, Carnovic was charged with several state and federal charges, including attempted murder of a police officer. If convicted, he faces life imprisonment.
Local news report on the indictment:
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