New York City police have identified a person of interest in Tuesday’s horrific shooting attack that left at least 29 injured, including 10 with gunshot wounds, in a subway station in Sunset Park, Brooklyn.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams (D-New York) speaks with @DanaBashCNN as the manhunt continues for the suspect who shot 10 people in a Brooklyn subway station.
Stay up to date on this developing story with CNN https://t.co/s7flP955tu pic.twitter.com/QmG3mo8UUH
— CNN (@CNN) April 12, 2022
Miraculously, no one was killed. Five of the victims are in critical but stable condition, but all are expected to survive.
16 Wounded in Shooting Attack on Brooklyn Subway, Glock Pistol Recovered
Police identified 62-year-old Frank James as a person of interest but did not accuse him of the shooting. He was described as a 5’5” heavy-set black male who was last seen wearing a gray hoodie and a green construction vest.
The suspect, who is still at large, put on a gas mask, popped open a smoke grenade, pulled out an axe, dropping it to the floor, and then opened fire with a pistol at around 8:24 am in a subway car on the Manhattan-bound N line as it pulled into the 36th Street station.
He was mumbling to himself, according to multiple reports.
A total of 33 rounds were fired, police said; 10 people were shot, and 19 others suffered smoke inhalation, shrapnel wounds and other injuries.
The victims included seven men and three woman – including one who was pregnant – as well as two teens ages 15 and 19.
A hatchet, two gas canisters, a can of pepper spray, a bag of fireworks, smoke grenades and gasoline were recovered at the scene as well.
The suspect was using a rolling milk crate-type carrier to cart around his stuff, law enforcement sources told the NY Post.
A Glock 17 9mm semi-automatic pistol was found at the scene of the carnage, along with three extended ammunition magazines: one emptied, one partially emptied and jammed, and one full. One of the magazines was found in the weapon, but another was found on a seat, with the third still in the backpack. The source said it was a miracle the gun jammed. “We could be talking about a lot more people in hospitals or worse,” he said.
James recorded “dozens of hours” of YouTube videos ranting about Mayor Eric Adams, homeless people in the subways, guns and accusing outreach workers of being “homosexual predators,” according to the NY Daily News. The NYPD has beefed up the mayor’s security detail in response to the information.
“This is terror,” Adams told CNN in an interview Tuesday afternoon. “This is terror; someone attempted to terrorize our system… We will apprehend the person that’s responsible.”
Adams, overseeing the investigation remotely because he is in quarantine after having been diagnosed earlier this week with COVID-19, expressed confidence in the ability of NYPD to track down the attacker in a separate interview with WPIX.
“We are one of the most well-trained law enforcement entities in the entire country,” the mayor said. “The NYPD, they are well aware of what they’re doing.”
However, NYPD Commissioner Keechant Sewell said at a 12 noon press briefing at the scene that police are not investigating the incident as an act of terrorism “at this time.”
A credit card in the name of Frank James was found at the scene, along with the key to a white U-Haul van with Arizona plates that was found within hours on King’s Highway between West 3rd and West 4th Street.
Police said James had entered the Kings Highway train station.
In a follow-up news briefing, Sewall said, “We are looking for Frank James. We know he rented the van. The key to that U-Haul van was found at the crime scene,” she said. “We are looking to determine if he has any connection to the train. We know Mr. James rented that U-Haul truck in Philadelphia.”
Anyone with information on his whereabouts is asked to call NYPD Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS.
