A man charged at four New York police officers with a metal hatchet Thursday , hitting two of them at a time of high alert for authorities concerned they might be targeted in the United States and Canada . The man was hiding behind a bus shelter as if he was waiting to attack the officers , according to a law enforcement official , who said it almost appeared as if he was stalking them . The officers were posing for a photo when the man pounced , Police Commissioner Bill Bratton said . He struck one officer in the right arm and another in the head , according to the commissioner . The two officers who were n't hit then shot at and killed the attacker . The law enforcement official identified the suspect as Zale H. Thompson , who had a criminal record in California and had been discharged from the Navy for misconduct , according to the source . The police officer who was struck in the head remains in critical but stable condition . The other officer , who is 24 , was struck in the arm and was expected to be released soon . A 29-year-old bystander who was struck by a bullet in the lower back was also taken to a hospital . Her condition was not known . When asked if the unprovoked attack was tied to terrorism or to recent calls by radicals to attack military and police officers , Bratton said , `` there is nothing we know as of this time that would indicate that were the case , '' and a senior law enforcement official told CNN on Friday that investigators do not believe that Thompson , a Muslim convert , was driven by any radical Islamic views . Nevertheless , Bratton acknowledged concern because of recent attacks on uniformed officers . `` I think certainly the heightened concern is relative to that type of assault based on what just happened in Canada , '' he said . On Wednesday , Cpl . Nathan Cirillo was shot and killed as he stood guard at Canada 's National War Memorial before shots erupted in the halls of the country 's Parliament minutes later . The Ottawa gunman had `` connections '' to jihadists in Canada who shared a radical Islamist ideology , including at least one who went overseas to fight in Syria , multiple U.S. sources told CNN on Thursday . And on Monday , another Canadian soldier -- this one in Quebec -- was run over and killed by another man who the Royal Canadian Mounted Police 's Martine Fontaine said had been `` radicalized . '' New York put its officers on alert after Thursday 's attack , urging them to `` maintain a heightened level of awareness against random attacks , '' several law enforcement officials said . It 's not the only city so affected . Washington 's Metropolitan Police Department has also `` increased security levels and visibility , so the public should expect to see an enhanced presence '' of officers in light of the Canada and New York attacks , spokeswoman Gwendolyn Crump told CNN .
There 's no indication the attack is tied to radical Islam , commissioner says . Police : New York police need to be on alert ` ` against random attacks '' The man rushed four police officers in Queens , New York , police commissioner says . Two were wounded ; the two who were n't shot at the attacker , who was killed , commissioner says .