NEW YORK, NY – In a solemn courtroom on Wednesday, the mother of a New Yorker who was tragically killed in 2017 expressed that no punishment imposed on the assailant could ever compare to the immeasurable pain she has endured.
Monica Missio, the mother of Nicholas Cleves, addressed the court during the sentencing hearing of Sayfullo Saipov. Saipov had been convicted in January on charges of murder and terrorism for driving a truck into cyclists and pedestrians on a crowded Manhattan bike path, resulting in the deaths of eight people and injuries to twelve others.
Missio, overcome with grief, stated, “This evil murderer has destroyed so many lives. It disgusts me that he gets to wake up every day while my son does not. His barbarism and cruelty fill me with rage.”
Missio was one of more than twenty victims and family members who spoke before U.S. District Judge Vernon Broderick, who ultimately sentenced the 35-year-old Saipov to life in prison without parole. The life sentence was automatic after the jury was deadlocked on whether Saipov should receive the death penalty.
Prosecutors revealed that Saipov had used a Home Depot rental truck to carry out the attack along the Hudson River on Manhattan’s West Side. His motive was to gain recognition from the terrorist organization Islamic State, commonly known as ISIS. The United States designates ISIS as a terrorist group.
Rachel Pharn, a survivor of the attack, expressed her desire to understand what had driven Saipov to commit such an act.
“Mr. Saipov, I can forgive you for what you did to me, for breaking my spirit,” Pharn said. “But when I look around the room, when I think of all the pain you caused, that I cannot forgive. That is between you, them, and Allah.”
Many of those who lost their lives or were injured were foreign nationals visiting New York City, the largest city in the United States. Several individuals who spoke at the hearing had traveled from Argentina and Belgium.
Saipov, wearing a headset to listen to an interpreter, looked downward as the father of Ann-Laure Decadt, one of the victims, expressed his hope that one day Saipov would be able to dissuade others from perpetrating similar attacks.
“Mr. Saipov, I have not heard any sign of remorse from you,” said Frank Decadt from Belgium. “But it is my hope that one day you will understand the extent of the horror that you have inflicted on so many people, and also understand that what you have done cannot be repaired.”
It remained uncertain whether Saipov would address the court. He is expected to be incarcerated at Colorado’s Supermax facility, the most secure federal prison in the United States, where he will spend the majority of each day isolated in a cell with a concrete bed.
Saipov’s trial marked the first federal death penalty case since President Joe Biden, a Democrat, assumed office in 2021. During his campaign, Biden pledged to abolish capital punishment in federal cases.
(Based on Reporting by Luc Cohen in New York and Brendan O’Brien in Chicago; Editing by Will Dunham, Bill Berkrot, and Leslie Adler)