Times Square NYPD machete attacker sentenced to 27 years for New Year's Eve ambush
NEW YORK -- The man who attacked NYPD officers with a machete on New Year's Eve in 2022 near Times Square was sentenced to 27 years in prison Thursday.
Trevor Bickford, of Wells, Maine, pleaded guilty to federal terrorism charges, including attempted murder of the officers, earlier this year.
Bickford attacked Officers Louis Iorio, Paul Cozzolino and Mickel Hanna around 10 p.m. on Dec. 31, 2022 at 52nd Street and Eighth Avenue. One officer suffered a fractured skull, another was treated for a cut, and the third shot Bickford in the shoulder.
Bickford was on FBI watchlist
Investigators said Bickford, who was 19 at the time, had traveled from Maine to New York City to carry out the attack in the name of jihad.
Bickford had been placed on a no-fly watchlist earlier that month after his aunt warned authorities he had been radicalized online and wanted to travel overseas to fight with Islamic extremists.
He later confessed to a judge that "I attempted to kill three officers with a knife," adding, "I know what I did was wrong, and I am sorry."
He faced up to 20 years in prison for each count.
Officer's 1st day on the job
It was a dramatic and dangerous first day on the job for Officer Paul Cozzolino.
New Year's Eve was his first official shift after graduating from the police academy on Dec. 30.
He and Officer Iorio were on patrol before the ball drop in Times Square when they were attacked.
"Which just goes to show you, if it's not your first day, it could be your last day," Mayor Eric Adams said at the time. "The actions that police officers must take every day are life-threatening situations."
The attack happened just outside the NYPD's security zone for the New Year's Eve celebration.