New York can breathe a sigh of relief, the suspected 36th Street assassin is behind bars. Frank James, the man suspected of shooting on a subway train Tuesday morning at rush hour and injuring 30, including 10 from gunshot, according to the judiciary, was remanded in custody on Thursday and charged with “spreading terror across the city.” ” to have. The man known to the police was arrested without resistance on the street in Manhattan on Wednesday. His criminal record includes 12 entries for various offences.
“Mr. James saw his photo on the news yesterday, he called the police for help, he said where he was,” his attorney Mia Eisner-Grynberg said, warning of a “rash judgment.” Police had tracked Frank James, 62, thanks in particular to the key to a van he rented, which was discovered at the scene. The man had a YouTube page called “prophetoftruth88” (Prophet of Truth) where he ranted lengthy tirades, sometimes rambling and violent, about racial issues and insecurity in New York.
A terrorist attack compared to 9/11
In silence, sometimes taking notes between his two lawyers, Franck James listened to the charges against him, in particular that of “terrorist attack” which put his life in danger. Judge Roanne Mann ordered remand. He “opened fire on passengers on a crowded subway train and disrupted their morning commute in a way this city hasn’t seen in over 20 years,” said prosecutor Sara Winik, a reference to the deadly September 11 attacks 2001, the permanently traumatized New York.
The suspect wore a gas mask and triggered two smoke devices, filling the train with smoke before firing. The public prosecutor’s office has revised the tally upwards and puts it at 30 injuries, including 10 from bullets, compared to 23 at the start. “His attack was premeditated, carefully planned and caused terror among the victims and throughout the city,” the prosecutor added.
This bloody attack, perpetrated in a busy station in South Brooklyn, “36th Street”, when no fatalities resulted, aroused great emotion in the megalopolis of almost 9 million inhabitants, already suffering from an increase in crime since the Covid and shootings was affected -19 pandemic. Between Tuesday and Wednesday, New York City police documented no fewer than 14 separate shootings and shootings, including in Brooklyn and the Bronx, and four murders.