New York: Uber has confirmed that the man suspected of driving a vehicle down a bike path near the World Trade Centre site, killing eight people, was one of its drivers.

The ride-hailing service released a statement today saying 29-year-old Sayfullo Saipov passed a background check to become an Uber driver. Saipov has now been banned from the Uber app.

The company says it has reached out to law enforcement to provide its full assistance and is "aggressively and quickly reviewing" the suspect's history with Uber.

Uber says it is "horrified by this senseless act of violence."

A US official familiar with the investigation into what happened says Saipov is from Uzbekistan and came to the US in 2010.