The Man Who Attacked Time Square

2024 Author: Steven Freeman | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 08:15

Richard Rojas caused terror in Times Square on Thursday by running over several people in this busy area of Manhattan. The 26-year-old man killed Alyssa Elsman, an 18-year-old Michigan tourist, and injured 22 other people. After the tragic incident, many have wondered who the attacker is and what his motives were.

According to The New York Times, the young man of Dominican descent was a member of the US Navy for three years, and upon returning to the Bronx from the naval base in Jacksonville, FL, he was a changed man. Loved ones saw that his character became more hostile and thought he needed psychiatric treatment.

The young man was involved in violent incidents in recent years such as threatening to kill police officers and accusing a notary of stealing his identity and grabbing him by the neck. However, according to the newspaper reports, he never sought psychological help and found his escape in alcohol and marijuana.

"I wanted to kill them," he confessed to a traffic officer after running over the victims with his Honda Accord, according to documents in a Manhattan criminal court where Rojas received one count of murder and 20 counts of attempted murder when he appeared on Friday.. The attacker confessed to having smoked marijuana mixed with PCP, a drug that can produce temporary psychosis and violent behavior, on the day of the tragedy.