At least thirteen people were injured on the morning of Tuesday, April 12, when shots rang out at rush hour in the New York subway, and explosive devices were found on the spot, police and firefighters reported.
Photos and home videos showed pools of blood and people lying on the floor of a subway train as well as on the platform at Station 36th Street, in the borough of Brooklyn, in a smoky atmosphere.
From “undetonated explosive devices” were found, a fire department spokesman told Agence France-Presse (AFP). According to a police tweet, “There are no explosive devices operable at the moment”.
An important security device has been put in place in Brooklyn at the level of the 36and Street and IVand Avenue, where the facts occurred. “At 8:27 a.m. [14 h 27 à Paris]the police were called for an emergency call by a person who was hit by a bullet, in the subway”in the Brooklyn district, had confirmed, a little earlier to AFP, a spokesperson for the New York police.
According to several media, including NBC New York and the New York Timespolice are looking for a man wearing a gas mask and an orange jumpsuit, like those worn by construction workers in the megalopolis of almost 9 million people, the most populous city in the United States.
Increase in crime
U.S. President Joe Biden, who announced new anti-gun measures on Monday, has been briefed on the shooting and the White House has offered help to authorities in New York, the executive spokeswoman said. , Jen Psaki. New York State Governor Kathy Hochul, Democrat, said she was monitoring the situation and was being kept informed of the investigation.
The attack came as New York City has faced a spike in crime since the Covid-19 pandemic. Elected on security promises, the mayor of New York, the democrat Eric Adams, had launched at the end of January a plan to fight against the proliferation of firearms, after the death of two police officers shot dead during a intervention. But other gun dramas have made headlines since.
For the first quarter of 2022, the number of shootings and shootings in New York increased (from 260 to 296) compared to the same period in 2021, according to figures from the New York City Police Department (NYPD), the service city police, unveiled last week.