The Jewish community in Brooklyn is following Tuesday's mass shooting at an underground subway station with grave concern. According to initial assessments, although the goal of the shooter, who still has not been apprehended, was not to specifically target Jews, the community was still on high alert.
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The attack transformed Tuesday morning's commute into a scene of horror: a gunman wearing a gas mask set off smoke grenades and fired a barrage of bullets inside a rush-hour subway train in Brooklyn, sending screaming riders running through the station and bloodied people lying on the platform as others administered aid.
At least 10 people were wounded, said police, who were trying to track down the renter of a van possibly connected to the violence.
Chief of Detectives James Essig said investigators weren't sure whether the man, identified as Frank R. James, 62, had any link to the subway attack.
Authorities were looking at the man's apparent social media posts, some of which led officials to tighten security for New York City Mayor Eric Adams. Police Commissioner Keechant Sewell called the posts "concerning."
Ben Barber, a well-known businessman in the Bobov Hasidic community, who lives some 10 minutes away from the subway station where the shooting occurred, told Israel Hayom: "There's a great deal of confusion here around the incident. As of now, the police have cordoned off the entire area – no one can enter or leave. Sadly, we are used to such events in Israel.
"But, I spoke to a senior person in city hall – what's known thus far is that even though the initial suspicion was that it was terrorism of the familiar sort, for example, a desire to take revenge against the US or Jews for the assassination of [former Iranian Quds Force commander] Qassem Soleimani – to my understanding this horrific event has nothing to do with that. Of course, in any case, we are concerned about the nature of the event," he said.
"In light of the event, we will keep reiterating and stressing the issue of protecting the synagogues, especially right before Passover," Barber added.
Rabbi Elhanan Popko, who rides the train every day, told Israel Hayom that the shooting was "frightening yet unsurprising."
"There's been a clear, documented rise in crime … in the area. I see it with my own eyes, every day; people with all types of psychiatric problems riding this train line. I've been taking this train for 17 years – I've never seen anything like it. I've spoken with teachers who work in Brooklyn and live in Crown Heights and they have no intention of taking the train home these days. They told me it takes them back to the New York of the 1980s," said Popko.
"What's absurd is that they elected Eric Adams, who was a police officer in his past, as mayor of New York so that he'd be tougher on crime – but to our regret, it seems nothing new is under the sun and that reason the voted for him was wrong," he added.
Rabbi Gershon Guttman, a member of the "Shomrim" neighborhood watch group, said, "We are always on high alert to make sure nothing happens. This time, we're talking about an incident that occurred outside our neighborhood; but, of course, we are also looking at everything that's happening. I trust and have faith in the New York Police Department to catch the shooter. They are very good; this isn't the first time that a shooting of this sort has taken place. There were no Jewish casualties in [Tuesday's] event, among other reasons because even though this train goes from Manhattan to Brooklyn, it doesn't come through our neighborhood."
Five gunshot victims were in critical condition but expected to survive. At least a dozen people who escaped gunshot wounds were treated for smoke inhalation and other injuries.
The attack was not being investigated as terrorism, but that the NYPD said it was "not ruling out anything."
Sitting in the back of the train's second car, the gunman tossed two smoke grenades on the floor, pulled out a Glock 9 mm semi-automatic handgun and started firing, Essig said. A rider's video shows a person raising an arm and pointing at something as five bangs sound.
Passengers in the smoke-filled car pounded on the door to an adjacent car, seeking to escape, rider Juliana Fonda, who was in that adjoining car, told the news site Gothamist.
Investigators believe the shooter's gun jammed and kept him from firing more, said two law enforcement officials who weren't authorized to discuss the investigation and spoke on condition of anonymity.
Essig said police found the weapon, along with extended magazines, a hatchet, detonated and undetonated smoke grenades, a black garbage can, a rolling cart, gasoline and the key to a U-Haul van.
That key led investigators to James, who has addresses in Philadelphia and Wisconsin, the detective chief said. The van was later found, unoccupied, near a subway station where investigators determined the gunman entered the train system, Essig said.
Rambling, profanity-filled YouTube videos apparently posted by James, who is black, are replete with Black nationalist rhetoric, violent language and bigoted comments, some of them directed at other black people. One, posted on April 11, criticizes crime against black people and says drastic action is needed to change things.
Several videos mention New York's subways, and Adams, the mayor, is a recurring theme.
A Feb. 20 video says the mayor and governor's plan to address homelessness and safety in New York City's subway system "is doomed for failure" and refers to himself as a "victim" of the mayor's mental health program.
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The attack unnerved a city on guard about a rise in gun crimes and the ever-present threat of terrorism. It left some New Yorkers jittery about riding the nation's busiest subway system and prompted officials to increase policing at transportation hubs from Philadelphia to Connecticut.
"This individual is still on the loose. This person is dangerous," Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, warned at a midday news conference.
In Menlo, Iowa, US President Joe Biden praised "the first responders who jumped in action, including civilians, civilians who didn't hesitate to help their fellow passengers and tried to shield them."
Adams, a Democrat a little over 100 days into his term, has made cracking down on crime – especially in the subways – an early focus of his administration, pledging to send more police officers into stations and platforms for regular patrols. It wasn't immediately clear whether any officers were in the station when the shootings occurred.
The mayor, who is isolating following a positive COVID-19 test on Sunday, said in a video statement that the city "will not allow New Yorkers to be terrorized, even by a single individual."
