(AP) A Belgian man whose wife lost her legs in a deadly terrorist attack on a New York City bike path said he contemplated suicide after he had largely recovered from his physical wounds. He testified Tuesday as a jury considers the death penalty for the militant Islamic attacker.
Aristide Melissas testified in a federal court in Manhattan to aid the government’s push for a death sentence for Sayfullo Saipov. If all 12 jurors do not agree to end his life, the 35-year-old will automatically spend life in prison.
Melissas said he was undergoing 22 months of rehabilitation from physical wounds that included a fractured skull when he hit an 18-month stretch of mental lows “where I thought of ending my life.”
