New York Terror Attack: How the Truck Rampage Unfolded

The man accused of driving a Home Depot rental truck into a group of pedestrians and cyclists in New York is an Uzbekistan national who lived in New Jersey and drove for Uber. More recently he has been living with his wife and children in New Jersey.

Trump's comments came after a slew of early-morning tweets railing against the suspect and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, who played a key role in shaping the legislation creating the diversity lottery program.

He added: "In doing that, they knew they couldn't train people to do complicated things like build bombs, so they urged them to use these obtainable items as the weapons and to target places that would be easy to attack".

A suspect is in custody and was identified as 29-year-old Sayfullo Saipov from Tampa, the U.S. state of Florida, reports said.

Reacting to the attack, New York's Mayor Bill de Blasio said: "This was an act of terror, and a particularly cowardly act of terror", before adding that that it was "aimed at innocent civilians, aimed at people going about their lives who had no idea what was about to hit them". "He did not seem like a terrorist, but I did not know him from the inside". However, The New York Times reported that he was on the radar of federal authorities. "We accompany the families in this terrible moment of deep pain, which all Argentines share", said the statement in Spanish.

Saipov was an Uber driver after passing the background check, but has since been banned from the Uber app, a spokesperson with the ride-sharing company said.

"Our only evidence to date is that this was an isolated incident that he, himself, performed", the governor said. Not on a crisp Halloween afternoon, when the streets were full of people and school kids were rushing home to go trick-or-treating.

Meanwhile, the city's residents appear to be following Cuomo's earlier advice to "be New Yorkers and live your life".

This latest example echoed other attacks in Europe - namely Barcelona, London, Nice and Berlin - where attackers have plowed vehicles through crowds of unsuspecting pedestrians. The driver seemed to have picked the timing carefully and his target too-an area that attracts tourists year-round and the site of several schools whose students were about to be dismissed.

The company is in contact with law enforcement and the FBI, and while it is quickly reviewing Saipov's work history, it said no "related" concerning safety reports had been uncovered. As passersby looked on in horror, the driver carried on south for sixteen blocks. He was taken to a hospital where he was operated upon to remove the bullet from his body.

The vile messages of joy circulated between extremists on Telegram come hours after the terror cell called on supporters to launch Halloween attacks.

A Missouri court record states Saipov appeared in May and entered a guilty plea. Fears intensified this spring, when a speeding car jumped a sidewalk in Times Square, killing one person and injuring more than twenty others. Taking to Twitter, the Prime Minister said, "Strongly condemn the terror attack in New York City".