NYPD: Brooklyn subway attack not being probed as terror, victims in stable condition

NEW YORK — The New York Police Department was engaged in a manhunt for the suspect in a mass shooting in a Brooklyn subway car that left 16 passengers injured.

Ten of the injured sustained gunshot wounds. Five of them were in critical condition, but their injuries were not life-threatening, a New York City Fire Department spokesperson said at a press conference on Tuesday near the scene, adding that the shooting was not being investigated as a terror attack.

The attack occurred just before 8:24 a.m. when an individual wearing a green hooded sweatshirt and a grey vest donned a gas mask on a subway car, opened a gas canister, and opened fire on passengers as the train pulled into the 36th street station, according to the New York Police Department spokesman who described the suspect as a 5’5″ heavyset Black male. There are no other known suspects.

The suspect did not fit any particular profile, the NYPD spokesman said, adding that they may have been dressed as a construction worker and wearing a gas mask.

A responding police officer at the scene asked passengers to call 911 because his radio wasn’t working, according to The New York Times.

The non-gunshot wound injuries were due to shrapnel wounds, smoke inhalation, and symptoms of panic, the NYPD spokesman said.

New York City Police Department personnel gather at the entrance to a subway stop in the Brooklyn borough of New York, on April 12, 2022. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)

Officials including New York Governor Kathy Hochul linked the crime to gun violence but were not ruling out a terror motive.

“This individual is still on the loose and is still dangerous,” Hochul said at the press conference. “This is an active shooter situation right now in the city of New York.”

“I’m committing the full resources of the state to fight this surge in crime, this insanity in our city,” said Hochul, whose lieutenant governor was indicted on corruption charges this morning.

“Everyone involved in this has one purpose — to stop the insanity of these crimes,” Hochul said.

Police officers were stationed on street corners in a wide area around the scene of the shooting hours after it took place. Emergency vehicles with their lights flashing patrolled the area and a helicopter hovered overhead.

Police cordoned off the area, which was thronged by around 200 fire personnel, transit workers, medical responders, and police, including officers armed with assault rifles and accompanied by police dogs.

New York City Police Department personnel gather at the entrance to a subway stop in the Brooklyn borough of New York, April 12, 2022. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)

Much of the city’s subway system was disrupted, causing delays and frustration to passengers in Brooklyn and other boroughs. The Metro Transit Authority said there will be major delays to the subway system citywide.

US President Joe Biden and New York City Mayor Eric Adams, who is in isolation due to a COVID-19 infection, were briefed on the incident, their spokespeople said.

A spokesman for the Israeli Consulate in New York said he was not aware of any Israelis who were injured in the shooting.

Police said officers were inspecting all subway stations and trains in the city’s massive transit system.

Schools in surrounding parts of Brooklyn were sheltering in place.

Multiple people shot at 36 street station by two people in #sunsetpark. All are currently being transported to the hospital #NewYork #Brooklyn pic.twitter.com/3Va2iXf0JQ

— Derek French Photo (@derekcfrench) April 12, 2022

The incident occurred in the Sunset Park neighborhood at 36th Street and 4th Avenue, at a station for the D, N, and R subway lines. The NYPD called on New Yorkers to avoid the area and call in with any information.

An NYPD bomb squad was on the scene and a fire department spokesperson said undetonated possible explosive devices were found on the scene.