Episode 4614: WHO IS THE NEW YEAR’S EVE JIHADI - AND WHY SHOULD WE CARE?

What made an all-American teen become radicalized, and 

so determined to wage jihad that he took a train from a 

small town in Maine to New York City in order to shout 

“Allahu akbar!” and attack three policeman at Times 

Square on New Year’s Eve? Though no one died, this is 

not just another ho-hum attack - like we’ve become 

desensitized to. It portends a very dangerous future. 

Trevor Bickman, 19, led a life that was almost too 

wholesome to be true. From honor roll to playing on his

high school’s champion football team, to marching with

the color guard and more. It was a Norman Rockwell 

childhood… until it wasn’t. Although he’d dreamed of 

becoming an American soldier, he converted to Islam after 

his father’s suicide in 2018, and became radicalized 

shortly before his N.Y. machete attack. We take a deep 

dive into Trevor’s mind, and explore his family secrets

to understand what makes him tick.  

Trevor’s handwritten manifesto and social media 

posts, finally convinced a grand jury that this was not 

just some teenager out for thrills, but a real jihadi. So, 

they added terrorism to the charges of attempted murder 

and attempted assault of police officers. But, how many 

more Trevor Bickfords are sitting at home, feeling lost, 

looking for a purpose, and wanting desperately to belong 

to a ‘family’ who appreciates them… even if it’s a family of 

terrorists!