NEW YORK (AP) — An altercation between two groups of teens on a New York City subway train led to gunfire after the train doors opened at the station on Monday, leaving one man dead and five others dead. I was injured.
The shooting occurred on an elevated train station platform in the Bronx around 4:30 p.m. At this time of day, the city's train stations were filled with children returning home from school, and many workers were beginning their evening commutes.
A 34-year-old man died, police said. The injured included a 14-year-old girl, a 15-year-old boy, and three adults, ages 28, 29, and 71. Some of the victims are believed to have been involved in the conflict, while others were bystanders waiting for a train. Police said four of the injuries were serious.
“We do not believe this was a random shooting. We do not believe this was an indiscriminate firing on a train or station by an individual,” NYPD Transportation Commissioner Michael Kemper said at a news conference. .
A search was underway for at least one gunman who fled the scene. Police did not rule out the possibility that more than one person fired shots.
The gunfire sent passengers rushing off the train and sent people scrambling for safety on the platform.
“The train was coming and there were two kids screaming,” witness Efrain Feliciano, 61, told the Daily News. “At least six shots were fired,” she said.
“When the bullet hit the wall, you could see a glow,” he added. “A woman was holding a child and screaming.”
Video from a television news helicopter showed the train stopping at the station and orange evidence cones placed on the platform, three stops north of Yankee Stadium.
“It was total chaos,” Luis Rodriguez, 34, told the New York Post. “I'm getting scared to ride the train.”
Fears of violence on subways have increased in recent years following a series of headline-grabbing incidents, including a mass shooting in which a man randomly shot and killed 10 people on a train. Brooklyn in 2022.
Overall, crime in New York City has actually plummeted since spiking at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Last year, the number of people shot citywide decreased by 39% compared to 2022. According to statistics from the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, subway murders also fell from 10 to five last year.
After Monday afternoon's mass shooting in the Bronx, Mayor Eric Adams called into 1010 WINS radio to tout the efforts police have made to take guns off the streets and reduce violence. But he acknowledged more work was needed to make people feel comfortable riding the system, which is recovering from a significant drop in passengers during the worst of the pandemic.
“Not only do people have to actually be safe, but people have to feel safe because of the things we've done to reduce crime,” Mayor Eric Adams said on 1010 Wins radio. “If something were to happen, it could send shockwaves through our entire system.”
