‘Person of interest’ in Brooklyn subway train shooting is now a suspect
Police are not only processing the scene of Tuesday’s shooting on 4th Avenue, but the scene of the U-Haul van they found about 25 minutes away on Kings Highway.
The chaos erupted on a New York subway train around 8:30 a.m. People covered their faces as smoke began to fill the car.
Police say a gunman donning a gas mask deployed a smoke canister on the Brooklyn subway, wounding multiple people with gunfire.
Panicked passengers rushed off the train — onto a platform that’s now been stained with the blood of gunshot victims.
“Witnesses state the male opened up two smoke grenades, tossed them on the subway floor, brandishes a glock 9mm handgun, he then fired that weapon at least 33 times striking ten people,” said Chief James Essig, of NYPD Chief of Detectives.
“As detectives processed the crime scene they recovered a 9mm semi-automatic handgun, extended magazines, and a hatchet,” said Keechant Sewell, New York City Police Commissioner. “They also found is a liquid we believe to be gasoline and a bag containing consumer-grade fireworks and a hobby fuse.”
Investigators have now identified a person of interest after finding a U-Haul key at the scene.
“The male who we believe is the renter of this U-Haul in Philadelphia is a Frank R. James, male, 62-years-old with addresses in Wisconsin and Philadelphia,” said Essig. “We are endeavoring to locate him to determine his connection to the subway shooting if any.”
Police say he let off 33 rounds, hitting 10 people. Five of them are in critical but stable condition.
MTA workers are now calling for more security.
“I’ve been assaulted two or three times already,” said MTA worker Charlton Dsouza of Passengers United. “A lot of our members are getting into confrontations because we stand up and we help people that’s what we do.”
New York police are offering a $50,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of James
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