The suspect in a terror-related attack in New York City has been identified as Akayed Ullah, a 27-year-old Bangladeshi immigrant who lives in Brooklyn and was allegedly inspired by ISIS.
The former taxi driver — who had the device affixed to his body by Velcro and zip ties, according to police — was taken to Bellevue Hospital.
“Preliminary investigation at the scene indicates this male was wearing an improvised, low-tech explosive device attached to his body,” NYPD Commissioner James O’Neill said at a news conference after the Monday morning incident in a subway passageway near the Port Authority Bus Terminal.
“He did make statements but we’re not going to talk about that right now,” O’Neill added, but declined to provide further details. Multiple law enforcement sources told NBC News it was an ISIS-inspired attack.
Authorities said it was unclear if the man planned for the device to explode where it did or if he had another target.
Mayor Bill de Blasio said it appeared the suspect acted alone.
“All we know of is one individual who, thank God, was unsuccessful in his aims,” de Blasio said.
There were few details about Ullah’s background. A spokesman for the New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission said he was a licensed cab driver from March 2012 to March 2015.
Soon after the explosion, police descended on at least three Brooklyn addresses connected to Ullah or his relatives — two in the Kensington section and one in Old Mill Basin.
A former Mill Basin neighborhood said the suspect lived there with his parents and two older brothers. She said she would see him leaving the house with camera equipment and assumed he was on his way to work.
“The family is very friendly, very nice, but he was quiet. Never talked to anyone, stayed to himself,” the neighbor said.
NBC News reached a relative of the suspect by phone. He was unaware of the incident and declined to comment.
This is a developing story, check back for updates.