A shooting in the middle of rush hour. Tuesday, April 12 at 8:24 a.m., a man fired multiple shots at the passengers of a subway in Brooklyn’s Sunset Park, after dropping smoke bombs there. The report shows 23 wounded, ten of them by bullets. ‘We were really lucky that it wasn’t much more serious’† said the New York police chief during a press conference. Franceinfo looks back at what we know about this tragedy.
Masked man shot passengers
While New York’s subways are packed, a man in a gas mask “two jerry cans opened allowing smoke to escape into the train”reported Keechant Sewell, the chief of police of ka city† †He then shot several passengers as the train pulled into 36th Street station.” in the Brooklyn neighborhood.
The suspect fired 33 bullets into the subway. On site, the researchers found “a 9mm Glock pistol, three ammunition magazines, an axe, deactivated explosives, liquid believed to be gasoline”specifies the New York Times (in English)along with a car key that allowed them to track down a recently rented, abandoned U-Haul American rental car in Brooklyn.
Actively wanted, the gunman was described by police as: “a black man” measures about 1m65, “heavyweight”and wearing a “green construction vest” and a gray hoodie. The police chief called for witnesses on Twitter.
We need the public’s help to arrest the person responsible for shooting multiple people today on the subway in #Brooklyn† The suspect is a black man, who was wearing a green construction vest and a gray hooded sweatshirt. Telephone conversation @NYPDTips did #800577TIPS with any information. pic.twitter.com/d2wTfNbMDD
— Commissioner Sewell (@NYPDPC) Apr 12, 2022
Police also released photos of the person who rented the van, without saying if it was the suspect. Authorities are offering a $50,000 reward for the gunman’s arrest, according to the New York Times†
This is Frank James who is interested in this research. All information can be addressed to: @NYPDTips at 800-577 TIPS. pic.twitter.com/yBpenmsX67
— NYPD NEWS (@NYPDnews) Apr 12, 2022
On the video surveillance side, New York Democratic Mayor Eric Adams lamented that at least one security camera at the 36th Street subway station where the shooting took place was down.
At least 23 people were injured
“It looked like it was planned. (…) We were stuck in the train. (…) There was a lot of blood on the floor”, one of the passengers told CNN. Photos and amateur videos showed pools of blood and people lying on the floor of a train, as well as on the platform of the 36th subway station in Sunset Park.
A passenger who was sitting on the opposite platform in the train told the New York Timescatching a young man who had been shot in the leg and was bleeding profusely. “He was so scared”he testified. The young man also told her that he first saw the gunman at Nieuw Utrecht Avenue station, four stops before 36th Street.
Ten of the victims were shot dead, five of whom are in a critical but stable condition, the New York Police and Fire Department said. The other 13 were injured trying to get out of the subway or from smoke inhalation. The 36th Street and 4th Avenue area around the subway station was closed off for much of Tuesday and many victims were treated at the scene.
The police ruled out the terrorist track
Although the shooter’s motives are not yet known, the police, who opened an investigation, dismissed the terrorist lead. ‘No explosives were found in the subway and there is no ongoing investigation into a terrorist act’said Keechant Sewell.
According to various media, including the New York Timesthe man who rented the van, Frank R. James, 62, posted several videos on YouTube in which he engages in lengthy political diatribes, sometimes fierce, highly critical of the New York mayor. “There have been reports that may be related to the person we are interested in, where he mentions homelessness, where he mentions New York, where he mentions Mayor Adams”confirmed the head of the NYPD.
Democratic mayor and former police officer Eric Adams, who was elected in November on security promises, announced in February that he wanted to bolster security on the subways by evicting more than 1,000 homeless people who regularly take refuge there, the report said. New York Times (in English)† Since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, New York has seen an increase in crime, with the homicide rate rising from 319 in 2019 to 488 in 2021.
Joe Biden praised the courage of citizens
‘We won’t let go until we find the culprit’ United States President Joe Biden promised to travel to Iowa. He also praised on Twitter “first responders and civilians who took action”†
Jill and I pray for those injured in the New York City subway shooting. We are grateful to the first responders and civilians who took action. My team has been in contact with city officials and we are working to support the efforts on the ground.
— President Biden (@POTUS) Apr 12, 2022
The day before, Joe Biden had announced measures against some of the firearms on the rise in the United States that killed 45,000 people in the country by 2021, including suicides, according to the Gun Violence Archive organization.
For her part, New York State Governor Kathy Hochul expressed her anger. “We are tired of reading the headlines about crime, whether it be shootings or the loss of a teenage girl or a 13-year-old. It has to stop,” she launched, citing several recent victims, including children, from shootings or stray bullets.
