Bronx subway shooting – live: One dead and five injured after ‘dispute between teens’ turns deadly

At least one person was killed and five were injured after an apparent dispute between teenagers on the New York City subway turned deadly on Monday evening. Police said the rush hour shooting at Mount Eden Avenue station in the Bronx was not an “indiscriminate” act of violence but believed to have escalated from an argument between two “groups” of minors.

One 34-year-old man was killed, while five other people ranging from 14 years old to 71 years old were taken to hospital in a stable condition.

Some of the victims are believed to have been part of the dispute, while others were bystanders, police said.

“This is unacceptable, and when detectives make an arrest – and I’m very confident they will – there must be swift, immediate, strong consequences,” said New York Police Department (NYPD) chief of transit Michael Kemper.

Follow live updates on the situation below.

Key Points

• Shooting began as ‘dispute between two groups of teens'

• What we know about the six victims

• Bronx shooter is now ‘NYPD’s most wanted'

What we know, the morning after the violence

03:12 , Io Dodds

Good morning. Police are still hunting for a suspect in yesterday's deadly shooting at Mount Eden Avenue subway station in the Bronx.

At least one person was killed and five injured in what police believe was a dispute between two groups of teenagers that escalated into violence.

"You are now NYPD's most wanted, and we have the greatest detectives in the world looking for you." said one NYPD official as he addressed the shooter directly during a press conference.

"We suggest you turn yourself in, 'cause you're not gonna make it."

We're hoping to hear more updates from the NYPD on their investigation today.

A reportedly lethal shooting on the New York subway

Monday 12 February 2024 22:47 , Io Dodds

Good evening. At least six people have been hurt and one is reported to be dead in a shooting on the New York City subway.

Based on early reports, the attack happened at the Mount Eden subway station in the Bronx at around 4:47pm Monday.

We don’t yet know whether this was a mass shooting by a single perpetrator, or something else, but we’ll bring you more information as soon as we have it.

Police urge people to avoid the area

Monday 12 February 2024 22:59 , Io Dodds

Police have asked New Yorkers and visitors to stay well clear of Jerome Ave between Inwood Ave and Townsend Ave.

Meanwhile, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), which runs NYC’s transit system, is rerouting trains around Mount Eden station.

New York congressman calls the incident a ‘mass shooting'

Monday 12 February 2024 23:03 , Io Dodds

New York congressman Ritchie Torres has commented on the attack, describing it as a “mass shooting”.

In a statement on X, formerly Twitter, about ten minutes ago, he said that the shoot was still at large and confirmed that one person had been killed.

All five wounded expected to survive, say officials

Monday 12 February 2024 23:16 , Io Dodds

According to CBS news, all five of the people who were injured in the shooting are expected to survive.

The New York Fire Department said that four of those people have serious injures, and one has minor injuries.

Police said the victims comprised four men and two women. The identity of the person who was killed is not yet known.

Man in his thirties was killed

Monday 12 February 2024 23:18 , Io Dodds

The Associated Press is now reporting that person killed in the shooting was a man in his thirties.

According to police, a single suspect opened fire at bystanders on the station platform at 4:38pm. That suspect is as yet unidentified and still on the loose, as far as we know.

Shooting reportedly began as a fight aboard a train

Monday 12 February 2024 23:35 , Io Dodds

Multiple outlets are reporting that the shooting began as an argument or fight aboard a train which then spread onto the platform.

Both The New York Post and CBS News have made that claim, citing police sources.

“I heard gunshots running, shooting – like maybe six times, five, six times. I heard two child[ren] screaming. And then, when I saw the train coming, that’s when I ran downstairs,” one witness told CBS.

Different outlets are reporting contradictory information about the victims, so for now we are holding off on saying more until we can verify the reports.

Victims’ age ranged from 14 to 71

00:14 , Io Dodds

The NYPD has now confirmed some basic details about the victims. Here’s what we know:

• A 34-year-old man, shot and later pronounced dead at St Barnabas hospital

• A 28-year-old man, shot in the right arm, taken to St Barnabas in a stable condition

• A 29-year-old woman, shot in the face and in the neck, taken to St Barnabas in stable condition

• A 15-year-old boy, shot in the thigh and in the ear, taken to New York Presbyterian Hospital in a stable condition

• A 14-year-old girl, shot in the foot, taken to Presbyterian in a stable condition

• A 71-year-old man, shot, taken to Bronx Care Hospital in a stable condition

Early reports that all the victims were children or teenagers seem to have been unfounded.

The NYPD will hold a press conference at 7:30pm Eastern Time to give out more information.

Shooting began as ‘dispute between two groups of teens'

00:26 , Io Dodds

Police believe that the shooting stemmed from a dispute between two groups of teenagers riding a northbound subway train.

At a press conference just now (it seems to have started early), NYPD chief of transit Michael Kemper said that detectives do not believe this was a case of one person “firing indiscriminately” into a crowd.

Instead, he said, the dispute escalated until at least one person pulled a gun, causing commuters on the rush-hour train to scramble out onto the platform.

Some of the victims are believed to have been part of the dispute, while others were bystanders, he added.

“This is unacceptable, and when detectives make an arrest – and I’m very confident they will – there must be swift, immediate, strong consequences,” said Mr Kemper.

Corrected: NYPD officer is named Michael Kemper

00:37 , Io Dodds

CORRECTION: The NYPD chief of transit is called Michael Kemper, not Michael Kaplan. The post below mentioning his name has been corrected.

Bronx shooter is now ‘NYPD’s most wanted'

00:56 , Io Dodds

At the end of the press conference, one NYPD official addressed the shooter directly with a special message.

"You are now NYPD's most wanted," he said. "And we have the greatest detectives in the world looking for you.

"We suggest you turn yourself in, 'cause you're not gonna make it."

‘New York’s heart breaks'

01:32 , Io Dodds

The head of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) has given his condolences to the victims and their families, calling the shooting a heartbreaking act of “senseless violence”.

“New York’s heart breaks when people who are headed home, and kids headed home from school to do their homework, are subjected to random acts of violence like what occurred here today late this afternoon,” said MTA chairman and chief executive Janno Lieber at the press conference earlier today.

“New York’s heart breaks when guns are on the streets, even though the mayor and the governor are doing everything possible to get guns off the streets...

“We have made tremendous progress against transit crime, with an amazing transit bureau. But right now we are in mourning, and determined to fight back against guns on our streets.”

New York is still fighting to preserve its strict gun laws

01:59 , Io Dodds

Monday’s shooting in the Bronx came as New York’s state government continues to fight in court to preserve its historically strict gun laws.

In 2022, the US Supreme Court struck down a century-old New York law that required gun owners to show they had “proper cause” before getting a concealed carry licence.

State officials responded by crafting new legislation that allowed more people to get a licence while banning guns from actually being carried in schools, public playgrounds, theatres, bars, buses, airports, and more.

Now those laws too are being challenged, and certain provisions such as banning guns from places of worship and requiring applicants to list their social media accounts have already been struck down.

'What I heard sounded like a battlefield'

02:44 , Io Dodds

Witnesses have described the station at the centre of the shooting as "like a battlefield" as gunshots rang out and commuters fled for cover.

Yanesa Ortega, a 29-year-old MTA bus driver, told The New York Times that she was walking home near the station when she heard multiple shots and saw people running and screaming down the station steps.

Heriberto Paredes, a 52-year-old mechanic who works nearby, said that he gave first aid to a young woman whose coat was soaked with blood.

"What I heard sounded like a battlefield,” Mr Paredes told the Times. "I could see the despair on people’s faces, wondering how something like this could happen in a city that’s supposedly safe."

How bad is violent crime in New York right now?

03:37 , Io Dodds

Reported crime rates in New York City have fallen overall since 2019, despite spiking after the end of Covid lockdowns.

According to police statistics, the Big Apple's crime rates fell by 0.3 per cent between 2022 and 2024, with murders falling by 12 per cent.

There were also significant drops in shootings, robberies, burglaries, sexual assaults, and grand larcenies.

Compared to its population, New York has a considerably lower murder rate than other cities such as Detroit, Cleveland, St Louis, and Kansas City, Missouri.

Crimes on the subway are relatively rare, but a number of headline-grabbing shootings on the system over the past few years have stoked public concern.

In 2022, Frank James donned a gas mask before igniting smoke bombs and opening fire with a handgun on a crowded Manhattan-bound train, wounding ten people.

And earlier this year, a man was shot and killed on the subway in Brooklyn when he tried to break up a fight between two other passengers who were arguing over loud music.

Witness describes 'total pandemonium'

04:41 , Io Dodds

A witness has described the scene at Mount Eden Avenue station as "total pandemonium".

Luis Rodrigquez, 34, told The New York Post that he was a passenger on the train. He heard children screaming, and quickly ran out of the station as soon as he had disembarked.

"It was total pandemonium," he said. "It makes you scared to ride the train."

One woman, who called emergency services from her apartment close to the station, told the Post that she saw three teenage boys on the tracks after the shooting.

Two of them appeared to be having an argument, she said, while another one ran away. She also said they were carrying book bags.

ICYMI: What we know about the six victims

05:50 , Io Dodds

Here’s what the police have told us so far about the six victims:

• A 34-year-old man, shot and later pronounced dead at St Barnabas hospital

• A 28-year-old man, shot in the right arm, taken to St Barnabas in a stable condition

• A 29-year-old woman, shot in the face and in the neck, taken to St Barnabas in stable condition

• A 15-year-old boy, shot in the thigh and in the ear, taken to New York Presbyterian Hospital in a stable condition

• A 14-year-old girl, shot in the foot, taken to Presbyterian in a stable condition

• A 71-year-old man, shot, taken to Bronx Care Hospital in a stable condition

Kathy Hochul comments on the tragedy

06:55 , Io Dodds

New York governor Kathy Hochul has addressed the situation.

“I’ve been briefed on the shooting at the Mount Eden station in the Bronx & have directed the MTA to provide all necessary support to the NYPD as they complete their investigation,” she said on X, the social network formerly known as Twitter.

“We’re deeply grateful to the NYPD and other first responders working to address this situation.”

'Not only must people be actually safe, they must feel safe'

08:01 , Io Dodds

City mayor Eric Adams has vowed to make sure that New Yorkers feel safe travelling on the subway in the wake of Monday’s shooting.

Calling in to 1010 WINS radio on Monday evening, he said that the NYPD had done a lot of work to get guns off the street and reduce violence.

But he said that more was needed to restore public confidence in the system, which is still recovering from the loss of riders and therefore revenue during the pandemic.

“Not only people must be actually safe, but what we have done in lowering crime, they must feel safe,” Mr Adams said. "And something like this can send shockwaves throughout our entire system."

ICYMI: Witnesses describe how station became a ‘battlefield'

09:06 , Io Dodds

Witnesses have described the station at the centre of the shooting as “like a battlefield” as gunshots rang out and commuters fled for cover.

Yanesa Ortega, a 29-year-old MTA bus driver, told The New York Times that she was walking home near the station when she heard multiple shots and saw people running and screaming down the station steps.

Heriberto Paredes, a 52-year-old mechanic who works nearby, said that he gave first aid to a young woman whose coat was soaked with blood.

“What I heard sounded like a battlefield,” Mr Paredes told the Times. “I could see the despair on people’s faces, wondering how something like this could happen in a city that’s supposedly safe.”

ICYMI: New York’s battle to preserve strict gun laws

09:53 , Io Dodds

Monday’s shooting in the Bronx came as New York’s state government continues to fight in court to preserve its historically strict gun laws.

In 2022, the US Supreme Court struck down a century-old New York law that required gun owners to show they had “proper cause” before getting a concealed carry licence.

State officials responded by crafting new legislation that allowed more people to get a licence while banning guns from actually being carried in schools, public playgrounds, theatres, bars, buses, airports, and more.

Now those laws too are being challenged, and certain provisions such as banning guns from places of worship and requiring applicants to list their social media accounts have already been struck down.

ICYMI: How bad is violent crime in New York right now?

10:35 , Io Dodds

Reported crime rates in New York City have fallen overall since 2019, despite spiking after the end of Covid lockdowns.

According to police statistics, the Big Apple’s crime rates fell by 0.3 per cent between 2022 and 2024, with murders falling by 12 per cent.

There were also significant drops in shootings, robberies, burglaries, sexual assaults, and grand larcenies.

Compared to its population, New York has a considerably lower murder rate than other cities such as Detroit, Cleveland, St Louis, and Kansas City, Missouri.

Crimes on the subway are relatively rare, but a number of headline-grabbing shootings on the system over the past few years have stoked public concern.

In 2022, Frank James donned a gas mask before igniting smoke bombs and opening fire with a handgun on a crowded Manhattan-bound train, wounding ten people.

And earlier this year, a man was shot and killed on the subway in Brooklyn when he tried to break up a fight between two other passengers who were arguing over loud music.

NYPD hunt New York’s ‘most wanted’ after one killed and five wounded in subway shooting

14:57 , Graig Graziosi

The person who opened fire at a subway station in New York, leaving one person dead and five others injured, is now the NYPD’s “most wanted”, police said.

Members of the public were advised to avoid the area following the “mass shooting” incident that took place at the Mount Eden Avenue subway station in the Bronx, in New York on Monday.

One of the victims – a 34-year-old male – died at St Barnabas Hospital, police said. The other five victims were treated at the scene and transported to hospital, though their injuries are not believed to be life threatening.

READ MORE:

NYPD hunt New York’s ‘most wanted’ after one killed and five hurt in subway shooting

NYPD releases photos, asks for help identifying two men allegedly connected to the shooting

15:32 , Graig Graziosi

The NYPD is asking for help identifying two men who were at the Mt Eden Station in the Bronx on the night of the shooting that left one man dead and five others wounded.

The police have not named the men as suspects.

Blog closed

16:13 , Graig Graziosi

Thanks for reading.

Stick with the The Independent for more reporting on this and other stories.