NYC Motorcycle Attack Update: Off-camera incident sparked biker-SUV confrontation, motorcyclists say

(CBS/AP) NEW YORK - Some bikers involved in the Sept. 29 attack on a family in an SUV by a group of motorcyclists are suggesting the SUV driver, Alexian Lien, knowingly or not, instigated the confrontation by clipping one of the bikes involved in the rally on the Henry Hudson Parkway in Manhattan.

Meanwhile, an NYPD officer who works for the department's Internal Affairs Bureau has come forward to confess he was among those from the police force present during the violent incident, sources say, reports DNAinfo.

Matthew Rodriguez, 28, a five-year veteran who currently works for the department's Internal Affairs Bureau, which is responsible for monitoring wrongdoing by fellow officers, quietly acknowledged his involvement a few days ago, the local news site reports.

Rodriguez's lawyer would only say his client has not been charged in the Sept. 29 incident, according to the site.

Wojciech Braszczok, an NYPD undercover detective, was arraigned earlier in the week on charges of assault, gang assault and criminal mischief stemming from the incident.

Prosecutors say Braszczok, a 10-year-veteran of the force who was off-duty at the time of the melee, was an active participant in the mob of motorcyclists who chased and terrorized Lien and his passengers, which included his wife and young daughter. His lawyer says he'll be exonerated.

The NYPD has saidat least three of their police officers may have played a rolein the Sept. 29 incident.

Police have said they are questioning Narcotics Detective Samir Gonsalves who also took part in the motorcycle ride.

To date, at least seven people have been arrested for their alleged involvement in the beating of Lien. On Friday, four of those seven men, Clint Caldwell, Wojciech Braszczok, Reginald Chance and Craig Wright, were scheduled to appear in court.

The melee seriously injured at least one biker and left Lien, a 33-year-old father, beaten in the street.

Police say the incident was touched off when a biker slowed down and bumped Lien's Range Rover. Video captured at the scene shows Lien surrounded by dozens of helmeted riders before he takes off and strikes one. The bikers give chase and Lien is eventually stopped, pulled from the SUV and beaten.

Some of the bikers involved in the incident are now claiming Lien, knowingly or not, instigated the confrontation off-camera earlier by clipping one of the bikes in a rally on the Henry Hudson Parkway in Manhattan.

Attorney Gloria Allred, representing Edwin Mieses Jr., the biker who was seriously injured, claims Lien bumped another motorcycle while changing lanes on the highway 2 to 3 miles before his SUV knocked into biker Christopher Cruz.

"We have evidence that he hit that (first) bike and didn't stop," Allred told the Associated Press in a phone interview.

Lien hasn't been charged with a crime and hasn't spoken publicly about the case. His wife, who was in the SUV with him and their 2-year-old child, has blamed the bikers for putting the family in "grave danger."

"We were faced with a life-threatening situation, and my husband was forced under the circumstances to take the actions he did in order to protect the lives of our entire family," she said in a statement.

Complete coverage of the New York City motorcycle attack on Crimesider