The NYC attacker asked to display an ISIS flag in his hospital room and planned to attack the Brooklyn Bridge

• Sayfullo Saipov, who is suspected of killing eight people in a terror attack in Manhattan on Tuesday, planned to continue the bloodshed by striking pedestrians on the Brooklyn Bridge, according to a criminal complaint.
• He also asked to display an ISIS flag in his hospital room.
• Saipov faces federal terrorism charges, as well as charges of violence and destruction of motor vehicles.
• Saipov waived his Miranda rights and spoke to authorities about the attack and his motivation behind it, the complaint said.

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The man who allegedly killed eight people on Tuesday in the worst terror attack New York City has seen since 9/11 had planned to continue his rampage down the West Side Highway and onto the Brooklyn Bridge, according to a criminal complaint released Wednesday.

Federal prosecutors charged Sayfullo Saipov, a 29-year-old immigrant from Uzbekistan, with providing support to the terrorist group ISIS. He is also facing charges of violence and destruction of motor vehicles.

Saipov, who is in police custody and recovering from his injuries at Bellevue Hospital, waived his Miranda rights verbally and spoke to law enforcement officials about the attack, the complaint said.

He told authorities he began planning an attack in the US roughly one year ago, and decided two months ago to use a truck "in order to inflict maximum damage against civilians." He also said he chose the date of October 31 because it was Halloween — a date he believed would draw more civilians out onto the street.

Saipov's original plan was to plow the rented truck into civilians near the West Side Highway and the drive on to the Brooklyn Bridge to continue the bloodshed. Saipov never made it to the Brooklyn Bridge as he crashed the truck into a school bus near the West Side Highway's bicycle path.

From there, Saipov exited the truck while yelling "Allahu Akbar," Arabic for "God is great," and brandished a paintball gun and pellet gun. According to the complaint, Saipov also had a bag of knives, but left them in the truck before exiting.

He also admitted to writing the note found by authorities, which they said was written in Arabic and said the Islamic State would endure forever.

Saipov said he was was motivated to carry out the attack after watching a video featuring ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi asking what Muslims in the US were doing to respond to the killing of Muslims in Iraq.

Saipov also told authorities he had intended to display the black-and-white ISIS flags in the front and rear of his truck, but eventually decided against it so as not to draw attention to himself.

The complaint also noted that Saipov had asked during his interview with authorities if he could display the ISIS flag in his hospital room. He told them that "he felt good about what he had done," the complaint said.

SEE ALSO: Trump is assailing the diversity visa lottery after the NYC terror attack — here's what it is

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All the men who have accused Kevin Spacey of sexual misconduct

Following actor Anthony Rapp's allegation that Kevin Spacey made a sexual advance on him at age 14, a number of other men have come forward to accuse the "House of Cards" star of sexual misconduct. 

Most of the allegations involve Spacey inappropriately touching, or making sexual advances toward younger male actors. The accusations start as early as the 1980s, around when Spacey's acting career began, and run into the late 2000s. 

Last week, Spacey's apology to Rapp sparked criticism when he chose to come out as gay in the same statement. His representatives have not responded to Business Insider's requests for comment on subsequent accusations. 

Following Rapp's accusation, Netflix suspended production on its Spacey-led political drama "House of Cards."

Spacey's accusers follow a recent deluge of sexual misconduct allegations against influential men in Hollywood, a movement which began with numerous women accusing movie mogul Harvey Weinstein of sexual harassment and assault.

Here are all the men who have accused Kevin Spacey of sexual misconduct:

SEE ALSO: Netflix has suspended production on 'House of Cards' indefinitely, after a sexual misconduct accusation against star Kevin Spacey

Anthony Rapp

In a late October article published by BuzzFeed News, "Star Trek: Discovery" actor Anthony Rapp accused Kevin Spacey of making a sexual advance toward him when he was 14 and Spacey was 26. 

The alleged incident took place in 1986, when Rapp and Spacey were cast members in a Broadway production. Rapp said Spacey invited him to a party at his Manhattan apartment. He said that Spacey later found him watching TV in a bedroom, where Spacey picked him up, placed him on the bed, lay on top of him, and made a sexual advance.

"I still to this day can't wrap my head around so many aspects of it. It's just deeply confusing to me," Rapp told BuzzFeed News.

Spacey subsequently apologized to Rapp in a statement, and said that he did "not remember the encounter," but that if it happened it "would have been deeply inappropriate, drunken behavior."

 

 

Roberto Cavazos

Mexican actor Roberto Cavazos wrote a Facebook post accusing Spacey of trying to touch him against his will at the bar of London's Old Vic Theatre in 2008.

Spacey was the artistic director of the theater from 2004 to 2015, and Cavazos appeared in numerous plays there, starting in 2008.

"I don't remember how many people told me the same story: Spacey would invite them to meet him to 'talk about their careers,'" Cavazos wrote. "When they arrived at the theatre, [Spacey] had prepared champagne on the stage, beautifully lit. Each story varied in how far the picnic went, but the technique was the same. More common was to find him at the bar of the theatre, grabbing whoever caught his attention."

"There are many of us who have a 'Kevin Spacey story,'" he continued. "It seems the only requirement was to be a male under the age of 30 for Mr Spacey to feel free to touch us. It was so common that it became a local joke (of very bad taste)."

 

Tony Montana

Independent filmmaker Tony Montana told Radar Online that Spacey groped him at a Los Angeles bar in 2003, when Montana was in his 30s. 

"I went up to order a drink and Kevin came up to me and put his arm around me,” Montana told the outlet. "He was telling me to come with him, to leave the bar. He put his hand on my crotch forcefully and grabbed my whole package."

Montana said Spacey then told him, "This designates ownership." After Montana removed Spacey's hand and walked away, Spacey allegedly followed him into the bathroom. Montana said Spacey appeared intoxicated.

"I backed him out the door and I pushed him," he said. "One of his friends was in line and I said, ‘It’s time to take your boy home.’ They all ended up leaving."

Montana said that he suffered from PTSD for six months following the alleged incident.

See the rest of the story at Business Insider

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The NYC terror attack suspect had been planning for weeks and did it 'in the name of ISIS,' NYPD says

• The suspect accused of killing eight people in a terror attack in Manhattan on Tuesday did it in the name of ISIS, police said.
• Investigators found a note written in Arabic near the scene of the attack, which claimed the Islamic State would endure forever.
• Police said it appears the suspect had been planning the attack weeks in advance.

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The man accused of killing eight people in New York City on Tuesday when he rammed a rented pickup truck down a lower Manhattan bicycle path had carried out his attack in the name of ISIS, police said Wednesday.

Police have identified the suspect as 29-year-old Sayfullo Saipov, an immigrant originally from Uzbekistan who arrived in the US in 2010.

Saipov planned his attack for a number of weeks in advance, John Miller, the deputy police commissioner for intelligence, said at a press conference.

"He did this in the name of ISIS," Miller said. He said a note written in Arabic was found near the vehicle after the attack and contained a message that the Islamic State would endure forever.

"He appears to have followed, almost exactly to a tee, the instructions that ISIS has put out in their social media channels before with instructions to their followers on how to carry out such an attack," Miller said.

The attack began shortly after 3 p.m. on Tuesday, when Saipov careened his vehicle down the bike path, striking pedestrians and cyclists before colliding with a school bus, police said.

Saipov then allegedly sprang from the truck, brandishing two fake guns that were later found to be a pellet gun and a paintball gun, and shouting "Allahu Akbar," Arabic for "God is great."

A police officer then shot Saipov in the abdomen. Saipov was placed under arrest and brought to Bellevue Hospital, where he has reportedly been boasting about the attack from his bed.

Sources told CBS News that Saipov made "no bones" about his attack, that he is pleased with his actions, and he remains unapologetic.

Though Saipov apparently dedicated his attack to ISIS, investigators have characterized the attack as a "lone wolf" incident, meaning he did not receive support from the terror group and likely acted alone.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo echoed that characterization on Wednesday, saying in a statement that Saipov was "radicalized domestically."

Alex Lockie contributed reporting.

SEE ALSO: Suspect in NYC terror attack reportedly 'proud' and bragging from hospital bed about killing 8 people

DON'T MISS: Trump is assailing the diversity visa lottery after the NYC terror attack — here's what it is

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Trump is assailing the diversity visa lottery after the NYC terror attack — here's what it is

• President Donald Trump assailed the diversity visa lottery on Wednesday, declaring the New York City truck attack suspect entered the US through the program.
• The program admits roughly 50,000 immigrants per year through a lottery-based process meant for immigrants from countries with "historically low rates of immigration to the United States."
• A Republican bill Trump has backed that intends to slash legal immigration in half proposes eliminating the diversity visa program.

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President Donald Trump on Wednesday seized upon a popular immigration program he claimed a terrorist who carried out a deadly attack in New York City on Tuesday used to gain entry to the United States.

"The terrorist came into our country through what is called the 'Diversity Visa Lottery Program,' a Chuck Schumer beauty. I want merit based," he tweeted, adding "We are fighting hard for Merit Based immigration, no more Democrat Lottery Systems. We must get MUCH tougher (and smarter)."

Eight people were killed and at least were 11 injured on Tuesday, after a suspect plowed a rented pickup truck into a crowd of pedestrians and cyclists in lower Manhattan. The suspect was shot in the abdomen by a police officer, arrested, and identified as Sayfullo Saipov, a 29-year-old Uzbeki national who entered the United States in 2010.

It is still unconfirmed whether Saipov actually received his initial visa to the US through the diversity lottery, and unclear whether Trump was citing official government records or merely Fox News' reporting in his tweets.

The US State Department, which runs the program, did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment on Saipov's immigration history on Wednesday.

Here's what you need to know about the program:

What is the diversity visa lottery?

The diversity visa program allots roughly 50,000 visas annually to immigrants from countries with "historically low rates of immigration to the United States," according to the State Department.

Millions of people across the world enter the program each year. In 2015, the most recent year for which agency data is readily available, 50,000 visas were made available to more than 9 million qualified entries.

Applicants must have either a high school education or two years of qualifying work experience to be eligible to apply. All immigrants selected must undergo interviews at US embassies or consulates, and pay $330 in fees.

The program's eligibility requirements vary from year to year, accepting applications from slightly different lists of countries depending on their immigration levels. In 2014, for example, the lottery selected the highest number of its applicants from Nepal and Egypt, issuing about 3,500 visas to applicants from each country.

In 2010, the year Saipov entered the US, the program issued 3,356 visas to immigrants from Uzbekistan.

When and why was the program created?

The diversity visa lottery has been in place in some form since 1988, but the current iteration of the program was outlined in the 1990 Immigration Act, signed by then-President George H.W. Bush.

The bill had received bipartisan support, including from then-Rep. Chuck Schumer of New York, who served on the House immigration subcommittee at the time.

Irish-Americans initially pushed for the program after the Immigration Act of 1965 implemented rules prioritizing family reunification and skilled workers, disfavoring many Irish immigrants, according to The Washington Post.

In the late 1980s, two Democratic lawmakers from Massachusetts — Rep. Brian J. Donnell and Sen. Ted Kennedy — proposed allowing 10,000 visas on a first-come, first-served basis, allotted to those immigrants "adversely affected" by the 1965 Immigration Act.

The current program has since expanded the amount of visas available and eliminated the Irish bias, requiring that no single country receive more than 7% of the available visas per year. In recent years, most visas have gone to immigrants from African countries, State Department data show.

What have lawmakers said about the program in the past?

The diversity visa came under fire from certain Republican lawmakers earlier this year, when Sens. Tom Cotton and David Perdue re-introduced their RAISE Act, intended to slash legal immigration to the US by half over the next decade.

The RAISE Act, which Trump has backed, proposes eliminating the "outdated" diversity visa lottery.

"The Diversity Lottery is plagued with fraud, advances no economic or humanitarian interest, and does not even promote diversity," Cotton and Perdue said in their re-introduction of the bill in August.

It's not the first time the program has faced elimination. The failed 2013 Gang of Eight bill, intended to overhaul the country's immigration system, also proposed axing the diversity visa lottery.

Republican Sen. Jeff Flake of Arizona said Wednesday that, contrary to Trump's tweets blaming the diversity visa program on Schumer, Schumer was actually one of the lawmakers supportive of eliminating the program just four years ago.

Actually, the Gang of 8, including @SenSchumer, did away with the Diversity Visa Program as part of broader reforms. I know, I was there https://t.co/QQFJzPyRzC

— Jeff Flake (@JeffFlake) November 1, 2017

In fact, had the Senate Gang of 8 bill passed the House, it would have ended the Visa Lottery Program AND increased merit based visas. https://t.co/o3qJHHAv1C

— Jeff Flake (@JeffFlake) November 1, 2017

In response to Trump's Wednesday morning tweets, Schumer said "immigration is good for America," and accused Trump of "politicizing and dividing America, which he always seems to do at times of national tragedy."

What's next for the program?

The RAISE Act, which would eliminate the lottery, has little support from the majority of Republicans and Democrats in Congress.

But the program's elimination could come up as a potential bargaining chip in talks on the DREAM Act, which would replace the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program what Trump began phasing out last month.

Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham, a co-sponsor of the DREAM Act, confirmed that the Senate will scrutinize the diversity visa lottery during the bill's negotiations.

"It makes no sense to hand out visas and green cards this way," Graham told Fox News on Wednesday. "We want merit-based immigration. When it comes time to deal with … DREAM Act kids, that part of the deal should be to do away with the lottery system."

SEE ALSO: 'Act of terror': At least 8 dead in New York City after truck driver plows into crowd

DON'T MISS: Trump blames Chuck Schumer-backed law for New York attacker's entry to the US, pushes immigration changes

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NOW WATCH: Here's the 20-step vetting process refugees must follow to enter the US

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CBS is 'looking into' an allegation that Jeremy Piven groped an actress on the set of 'Entourage'

• Jeremy Piven of CBS' "Wisdom of the Crowd" has been accused of sexual misconduct by reality TV actress Ariane Bellamar.
• Bellamar said Piven groped her on multiple occasions, including on the set of HBO's "Entourage."
• Piven has denied the allegations.
• CBS responded on Tuesday, saying it was "looking into the matter."

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Jeremy Piven, the star of CBS' "Wisdom of the Crowd," is facing sexual misconduct allegations from reality TV actress Ariane Bellamar, who on Monday took to Twitter to accuse Piven of groping her on multiple occasions. 

A CBS spokesperson told Deadline on Tuesday that the network was "aware of the media reports" of the allegations, and "looking into the matter." 

CBS did not provide any additional information about its investigation. The network's Piven-led show, "Wisdom of the Crowd," began airing in October. 

Bellamar's accusations came in the form of the following three tweets on Monday, in which she alleges that Piven groped her on the set of HBO's "Entourage" and at the Playboy Mansion:

Hey @jeremypiven! ‘Member when you cornered me in your trailer on the #Entourage set? ‘Member grabbing my boobies on the 🛋 without asking??

— Ariane Bellamar (@ArianeBellamar) October 30, 2017

‘Member when I tried to leave; you grabbed me by the ass, looked at yourself in the mirror, & said what a ‘beautiful couple’ we made? #MeToo https://t.co/liD7irs0o0

— Ariane Bellamar (@ArianeBellamar) October 30, 2017

Jeremy Piven, on two occasions, cornered me & forcefully fondled my breasts & bum. Once at the mansion & once on set. #MeToo @AriMelber @CNN https://t.co/liD7irs0o0

— Ariane Bellamar (@ArianeBellamar) October 30, 2017

 In a statement given to The Hollywood Reporter on Tuesday evening, Piven denied the allegations.

"I unequivocally deny the appalling allegations being peddled about me. It did not happen," Piven said. "It takes a great deal of courage for victims to come forward with their histories, and my hope is that the allegations about me that didn’t happen, do not detract from stories that should be heard."

HBO also issued the following response on Tuesday: 

"Today, via the press reports, is the first we are hearing about Ariane Bellamar’s allegations concerning Jeremy Piven. Everyone at HBO and our productions is aware that zero tolerance for sexual harassment is our policy. Anyone experiencing an unsafe working environment has several avenues for making complaints that we take very seriously."

SEE ALSO: Kevin Spacey came out as gay after being accused of sexual misconduct, and people are not happy

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NOW WATCH: Here's why people are afraid of clowns — and what you can do to get over it

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A second actor has accused Kevin Spacey of sexual misconduct

• Mexican actor Roberto Cavazos has accused Kevin Spacey of sexual misconduct.
• His accusation follows actor Anthony Rapp's allegation that Spacey made a sexual advance toward him when he was 14 years old.

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Another actor has come forward to accuse "House of Cards" star Kevin Spacey of sexual misconduct. 

Mexican actor Roberto Cavazos said in a Facebook post on Monday that Spacey tried to touch him against his will at the bar of London's Old Vic Theatre in 2008.

As Mashable notes, Spacey was the artistic director of the theater from 2004 to 2015, and Cavazos appeared in numerous plays there, starting in 2008.

"I don't remember how many people told me the same story: Spacey would invite them to meet him to 'talk about their careers,'" Cavazos wrote. "When they arrived at the theatre, [Spacey] had prepared champagne on the stage, beautifully lit."

"Each story varied in how far the picnic went, but the technique was the same. More common was to find him at the bar of the theatre, grabbing whoever caught his attention," he continued. "That's how it happened to me the second time. I didn't stand for it, but I know some people who were too scared to stop it."

Cavazos' accusation follows a sexual misconduct allegation against Spacey made by "Star Trek: Discovery" actor Anthony Rapp last week. Rapp said Spacey made a sexual advance toward him when he was 14 years old. 

"There are many of us who have a 'Kevin Spacey story,'" Cavazos wrote. "It seems the only requirement was to be a male under the age of 30 for Mr Spacey to feel free to touch us. It was so common that it became a local joke (of very bad taste)."

In a statement, The Old Vic Theatre expressed "deep dismay" at the allegations.

"Inappropriate behaviour by anyone working at The Old Vic is completely unacceptable," it said.

Spacey's representatives did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Production on the Spacey-led Netflix series "House of Cards" was suspended indefinitely on Tuesday, following the allegation made by Rapp.

SEE ALSO: Netflix has suspended production on 'House of Cards' indefinitely, after a sexual misconduct accusation against star Kevin Spacey

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Federal authorities reportedly knew of the NYC terror attack suspect, interviewed him in a previous counterterrorism investigation

• Sayfullo Habibullaevic Saipov, the man accused of carrying out the deadly truck attack in Manhattan on Tuesday, had been known to federal authorities.
• FBI agents interviewed Saipov in 2015 as part of a separate, unrelated counterterrorism investigation.
• It is believed that ISIS inspired Saipov to carry out the attack.

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The man who rammed a truck into bicyclists and pedestrians in lower Manhattan on Tuesday, killing eight and injuring 11 more, had been known to federal authorities, according to The New York Times.

Sayfullo Habibullaevic Saipov, a 29-year-old Uzbek national living in Paterson, New Jersey, was interviewed in 2015 by federal agents as part of an unrelated counterterrorism case after he was identified as an associate of two men under investigation.

ABC News says, however, that Saipov was never the main focus of the investigation and law enforcement was never investigating him directly as a terror suspect.

In the last two years, federal prosecutors charged five men from Uzbekistan and one from Kazakhstan for supporting ISIS, according to the Times. It's unclear, however, if that is the investigation with which Saipov was involved.

News agencies reported that Saipov left a note inside his truck pledging loyalty to ISIS. He also reportedly shouted "Allahu Akbar," which translates to "God is great" in Arabic, as he carried out the attack.

Saipov came to the US in 2010 on a diversity visa and has worked as a commercial truck and Uber driver.

An official told ABC News that Saipov seemed "proud" that he carried out the attack. He underwent surgery at an undisclosed hospital and is expected to survive.

SEE ALSO: 29-year-old Sayfullo Saipov identified as suspect in New York terror attack, reportedly left note pledging ISIS loyalty

SEE ALSO: What makes the Halloween truck attack on New York's West Side Highway terrorism

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