New York Police have named Frank James as a suspect in connection with the mass shooting on a Brooklyn subway yesterday.
NYPD spokesperson Lt. Thomas Antonetti told CNN that police believe the 62-year-old was responsible for the shooting which saw 29 people hospitalized.
Investigators previously named James a "person of interest". A manhunt to find and arrest the man - who has addresses in Wisconsin and Philadelphia - is currently underway.
Reports of a shooting first emerged around 8.30 AM on Tuesday, when the first department was called the 36th Street subway station in Brooklyn's Sunset Park neighborhood.
Per CNN, NYPD Police Commissioner Keechant L. Sewell described how events unfolded in a news briefing later the same day. He explained how a man in one of the train cars put on a gas mask and then opened a canister which released smoke into the car. The man then started shooting, leaving 10 passengers with gunshot wounds and many more injured.
Of the victims who were shot, five were in critical but stable condition. Six more were hospitalized due to smoke inhalation, and others were injured in the ensuing panic. According to authorities, none of the injuries sustained were life-threatening.
CNN reports that a gun was recovered in the subway station, where multiple high-capacity magazines, fireworks, and gunpowder were also found.
James was named a 'person of interest' after they traced a U-Hail van connected to the incident back to him.
The 62-year-old is believed to have rented the vehicle while in Philadelphia. As for the U-Hail, it has been cleared by NYPD's bomb squad according to police and is waiting to be transported to a forensic location so authorities can assess it in a controlled environment.
NYPD have asked that anyone with information about the shooting or knowledge of James' whereabouts should contact a hotline immediately.
Meanwhile, New York City Mayor Eric Adams said in a statement that he was intent on bringing the shooter to justice. "We're going to catch this person. We're going to bring him to justice and hold him responsible for this horrific act on innocent people," he said.
