(CNN) Trevor Bickford, the 19-year-old accused of attacking New York Police Department officers with a machete on New Year’s Eve, traveled to the city “in order to kill people and carry out jihad,” prosecutors say.
Bickford allegedly went to the Times Square checkpoint just after 10 p.m., authorities have said. At the security area, he allegedly pulled out a machete, struck one officer with the blade and another officer in the head with the handle, and then swung the blade at a third officer, who shot Bickford in the shoulder, according to law enforcement sources and the NYPD.
The three injured NYPD officers were hospitalized in stable condition and have been released, the department said.
Speaking at Bickford’s arraignment Wednesday, prosecutors said the suspect tried to grab a gun from an officer during the attack, but couldn’t get it out of the holster.
