New York terror attack suspect pleads not guilty

The suspect in the October 31 terror attack in New York, the deadliest in the city since September 11, 2001, has pleaded not guilty to murder and other criminal charges.

Sayfullo Saipov is accused of killing eight persons and injuring 12 after driving a truck into pedestrians in New York on October 31. Saipov, who arrived in the US from Uzbekistan in 2010, entered his plea at a federal court on Tuesday, BBC reported.

He faces 22 murder and terrorism charges, including providing material support to so-called Islamic State.

Saipov was arrested immediately after the 31 October attack in Manhattan.

It was the deadliest attack on the city since the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in 2001.

The most serious of the charges carry the death penalty, though prosecutors have not yet said whether they will seek it.

US President Donald Trump has repeatedly called for Saipov to face the death penalty.

Saipov appeared in court wearing a dark blue prison uniform with his feet chained. A court-appointed lawyer spoke on his behalf and entered a plea of not guilty.

Saipov was shot by a police officer immediately after the attack and arrested.

In a criminal complaint filed the day after the incident, prosecutors described how Saipov reportedly bragged about what he had done from his hospital bed.

Investigators said he had detailed how he had been inspired by propaganda videos produced by the Islamic State (IS) and began planning the attack a year earlier.

Saipov also said he "felt good about what he had done" and asked to display the militant group's flag in his hospital room, investigators added.

The next hearing in Saipov's case is scheduled for January 23.

--IANS

pgh/