The federal government is asking for the death penalty in the attack on a bike path in Manhattan

Manhattan federal prosecutors announced Friday that they would seek the death sentence against Sayfullo Saipov, the man accused of a terrorist attack that killed eight people in a truck attack along the West Side bike path in Manhattan last October.

Prosecutors cited his alleged terrorist motives as "aggravating factors" justifying the death penalty, alleging that Saipov had targeted the Halloween bike path to maximize devastation, "to arouse fear among New Yorkers and tourists And support the Islamic State.

Saipov, 30, of Paterson, New Jersey, a legitimate permanent resident who came to Uzbekistan from the United States in 2010, reportedly used a rented van in the attack, injured more than a dozen of victims and he was inspired by ISIS.

The death notice followed a lengthy approval process at the Department of Justice. She said the death was justified by eight counts of murder and a motor vehicle use charge because of factors such as "depraved" crime, premeditation, multiple victims, lack of remorse and future danger.

Saipov's legal team opposed the death penalty, claiming that Saipov would plead guilty and spare the victims and their families to testify if the death penalty was removed from the table. Saipov's senior lawyer said Friday he was "disappointed" by the death notice.

"We believe that the decision to ask for the death penalty rather than accepting a guilty plea in prison for life without the possibility of release will only prolong the trauma of these events for all involved," the statement said. public defender David Patton.

Prosecutors also on Friday defended President Donald Trump's tweets calling Saipov a "degenerate animal" who "should be sentenced to death" against a defense motion to remove the Justice Department from the decision to kill him.

Urging US District Judge Vernon Broderick to reject the request to ban the death penalty or entrust the decision to an independent council, the government said that a similar defense request had been rejected by the President Bill Clinton after the 1995 bombing in Oklahoma City of a federal building.

"It is innocuous that the President has strong ideas regarding the attack at issue in this case, which is one of the most horrific terrorist acts in this country since September 11, 2001," he said. the prosecutor in Broderick, claiming that Trump's views only zeal in the application process. "

Prosecutors also argued that Saipov's claim was based on "speculative hopping".

"The Attorney General may fear losing his job (although there is no evidence that it is)," the prosecutor wrote. "The Attorney General could be influenced by the President's public statements about Saipov (although there is no evidence that it is)."

The trial of Saipov is scheduled for October 2019.