Following a fight on a Manhattan subway station in the middle of the day on Saturday, a 14-year-old boy was fatally stabbed, becoming the latest crime to shake New York’s troubled public transportation system.
An NYPD spokeswoman told DailyMail.com that after learning of a brawl that was taking place, police were dispatched to the 137 Street – City College subway station.
Officers discovered a 14-year-old with a stomach wound on the northbound 1 train platform when they arrived at the station.
Less than 30 minutes after the police were contacted, the person was taken to Mount Sinai St. Luke’s and later declared dead.
According to officials, the victim won’t be named until his family has been contacted.
Just north of Columbia University, a member of the Ivy League, lies the Hamilton Heights area where the station is situated.
Police found a knife and broomstick that they believe were used in the crime at the location.
According to a witness who spoke to CBS New York, the altercation started when three teenage girls tried to rob the victim.
The witness said: ‘There were girls. There were three little girls. There was one with the green that I, that’s one that did the stabbing, and there were two young kids, maybe like 13 or 14, too. They wanted to take his phone.’
The person also said that emergency services arrived too late to save the teen: ‘When they were bringing him up, he was dead. His head tilt back, his eyes were rolled back to the white, and purple, his lips were purple, purple. He was dead.’
Regarding the event, one person is being held in custody. A male who was discovered around the scene. He was bleeding from his stomach and back when he was caught.
His involvement in the murder has not been made public by the authorities.
A 15-year-old who said that he knew the victim told the Post: ‘It’s devastating, bro. This never should’ve happened. It’s sad. The kid was growing up and had so much to look forward to.’
A local resident told the newspaper: ‘You’re not even safe in the daytime anymore. They’re doing things in the daytime now. They have no respect for the cops or nobody. Where are the parents of these kids doing this mess? I just don’t understand.’
The suspect remains at large. Police have identified a suspect through surveillance video, according to the New York Daily News.
Speaking at a youth event in the Bronx, Mayor Eric Adams said: ‘So being here today and hearing about the stabbing really highlights why we need the lights on in schools like this so our children can have a safe space.’
The teen’s death took place at a station at 2:00 on Sunday, and a vigil will be held there for him.
According to NY1, NYC Transit President Richard Davey described the incident as “senseless and tragic.”
Davey stated that his office is helping the NYPD investigation.
Democratic New York City Councilmember Shaun Abreu, whose district includes the station, said in a statement: ‘My office is aware of the young man who was fatally stabbed on the 1 train platform in Hamilton Heights. This violence is despicable and tragic. I want to express my deepest condolences to the victim’s family, friends, and community.’
In Abreu’s district, this is the seventh murder so far this year.
This is the third stabbing to happen this week in the subway system of New York City. At about 6:00 pm on Tuesday, an unprovoked attack resulted in a 55-year-old man being struck and stabbed in the back at Brooklyn’s Jay Street-Metrotech station.
The victim was admitted to the hospital and is reported to be in stable condition.
Around 8:30 in the morning, during morning rush hour, a passenger on the seven train in Queens was stabbed in the face and hands. The status of the victim in the hospital was steady as well.
The largest subway system in the country will receive 1,000 extra police officers, according to an announcement made by New York City Mayor Eric Adams in January.
In 2022, violent crime has spread across New York City’s transportation network.
In comparison to the same period last year, rape and robbery have increased by more than 50%, according to data from the Metropolitan Transit Authority. Grand larceny is up over 97 percent, while criminal assaults are up over 15 percent.
This past Monday, NYPD Transit Chief Jason Wilcox informed the MTA board that the surge in larcenies was primarily on overnight trains. According to Wilcox, there have been several instances where passengers have slept off on the train and discovered that their belongings were gone.
Wilcox added: ‘We are focusing on this type of crime. Our detectives are investigating these crimes. But we also ask riders to be more vigilant in this area when they travel the trains late at night.’
Citations for transportation crime are up 40% overall from this time last year.
Four assaults and 82 cases of harassment were reported against New York City’s transportation workers in June alone, according to MTA records.
There have been 35 assaults on city workers in stations and on metro trains in 2022.
Despite an increase in violence, there has been an almost 35% increase in subway users since this time last year.
The NYPD said in June that 100 hidden cameras will be mounted on city subway cars.
The cameras will be used as a backup to assist investigators in gathering evidence even if they are not monitored and do not communicate in real time.
The selected trains are the ones where 53% of subway crimes took place.