New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D), a Democratic state legislator, recently sent 750 National Guardsmen and 250 officers from other law enforcement agencies under the control of the state to curb crime in New York City’s vast subway system. It was clear that the presence of soldiers on Thursday wasn’t enough to deter a blood bath in Brooklyn.
A fight was caught on video on the northbound A Train from Brooklyn. One man was shot as the large crowd of commuters screamed in terror.
Michael Kemper, NYPD’s Chief of Transit said during a press briefing, “A 36-year-old man confronted a 32-year-old man shortly after the man entered the train. This incident occurred around 4:45 pm.”
Multiple witnesses described the older man as “aggressive” and “provocative” towards the 32-year-old who just got on the subway.
The footage shows a black man in a baseball cap walking over to the young man and threatening him with a punch. The apparent instigator says, at one point: “You think you are going to beat up cops?”
Off camera, someone can be heard saying, “He thinks that you are a migrant.”
“F*** your race. “F*** you,” said an instigator.
The younger man squares off with his apparent aggressor, and nearby passengers begin to press toward the other side of the train.
One woman shouts “There are babies on here” as men circle the post, fists ready.
After a short exchange of blows the instigator gains the upper hand, pinning the 32-year-old against a chair.
A woman wearing a mask who had been standing next to the 32-year-old appears to reach into her purse and then stabs the instigator repeatedly in the back.
The instigator looks at the woman and shouts “Did You Stab Me?”
The masked woman replies, “I did nothing.”
The instigator continues to accuse the woman, even though his lower back is bleeding.
Kemper said, “It became physical again at one point and the 36-year-old removed a gun from his jacket. He then grabbed the firearm and started walking towards the 32-year-old who was riding the train. He yelled at him and walked toward him menacingly, and the situation became physical between the two.”
This video is going viral in the U.S.
It shows the moments leading up to the shooting on a NYC subway G train heading for Brooklyn.
NY Governor Kathy Hochul ordered National Guard soldiers to start patrolling the subway after an increase in violence pic.twitter.com/6V4pNEar83
— Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) March 15, 2024
During the final physical confrontation, the young man allegedly managed to grab the gun and fired multiple shots. Kemper said the gun used was “a small semi-automatic .32, or maybe a .25.”
The train stopped at the Hoyt-Schermerhorn Streets Station, where several police officers heard shots and rushed to action.
The 36-year-old man was transported to Brooklyn Methodist Hospital and is in critical condition. As of Thursday evening, the 32-year-old man was still in custody.
After the shooting, footage shows commuters taking shelter and police with guns drawn on the scene.
Unfortunately, I was there when it happened. @ABC7NY https://t.co/XkA9R7Uu0k pic.twitter.com/1JBatME00a
— Joyce Philippe (@JoyceMeetsWorld) March 14, 2024
Forbes reported that crimes on the transit system had increased by 13.1% from January to March compared to the same period in the previous year. Between Jan. 1 and Mar. 3, there were 388 incidents, and the majority of them being grand larceny or felony assault.
On March 3, a teenager was brutally assaulted at the 168th St Station, and a man aged 64 was thrown onto the tracks of the Penn Station subway. Spectrum News had reported that a man near Penn Station was randomly slashed by a box-cutter a few days earlier.
Richard Henderson, a 45-year-old crossing guard and father of three, was gunned down in January after trying to break up a fight on the subway in Brownsville.
Obed Beltran Sanchez, 35, who had no permanent address was killed and several others injured during rush hour last month. The shooting resulted from a fight between two teenage thugs at the Mount Eden Avenue Subway Station.
