A 'person of interest' in the Brooklyn subway mass shooting reportedly posted videos to his YouTube channel discussing violent crimes.
Yesterday, 13 April, a gunman set off two smoke canisters in a New York subway between 9th Street and 36th Street stations before shooting 10 people, with a further 13 injured in the immediate fallout of the attack.
New York police are currently looking for Frank R James, 62, said to be a 'person of interest' in the incident over a U-Haul van which may be connected to the shooting.
This is Frank James who is a person of interest in this investigation. Any information can be directed to @NYPDTips at 800-577-TIPS. pic.twitter.com/yBpenmsX67
— NYPD NEWS (@NYPDnews) April 12, 2022
NYPD Chief of Detectives James Essig said: "We are looking to determine if he has any connection to the train. We know Mr James rented that U-Haul truck in Philadelphia."
It has not been alleged that James is the shooter, and authorities have yet to determine a motive. Commissioner Keechant Sewell said it wasn't being investigated as terrorism, but she was 'not ruling out anything'.
On James' YouTube channel under the name 'prophet oftruth88', as Heavy reports, he shared clips from news reports of recent violent crimes in the New York subway, with Mayor Eric Adams facing questions over rising crime rates and homeless people.
In one video, James says: "Here we go again... I f***ing told you so," going into a rant about people on a screen behind him who made him 'more dangerous'.
Breaking: NYPD named Frank James as a person of interest in the #Brooklyn mass shooting. I looked into his social media. Like the Waukesha suspect & the Louisville BLM activist who allegedly tried to assassinate a mayoral candidate, he appeared to be a fan of black nationalism. pic.twitter.com/aUQZGakJfW
— Andy Ngô 🏳️🌈 (@MrAndyNgo) April 12, 2022
In another video, under the name 'profitof doom8888', James discusses Anthony Ferrill, the perpetrator behind the 2020 Milwaukee brewery shooting in which five people were killed, before Ferrill killed himself.
James says Ferrill, who was Black, was 'discriminated against' and 'no one say and do s**t' until he committed a horrific crime. "And I’ve dealt with it time and time again," he added.
Describing himself as a machinist, James also says there's a 'bunch of racist white motherf***ers' in that trade. "The vast majority of people, white motherf***ers are racist," he also says.
— Chief James Essig (@NYPDDetectives) April 12, 2022
As well as the key to the U-Haul van, investigators found a 9mm semi-automatic handgun at the scene with extended magazines, a hatchet and smoke grenades.
In a briefing, Essig said the suspect 'then fired that weapon at least 33 times, striking 10 people... the male then fled the scene, and detectives are actively trying to determine his whereabouts'.
The attacker was wearing a construction vest, grey hooded sweatshirt, and a gas mask at the time of the incident. A $50,000 (£38,450) reward is being offered for any information may lead to his arrest.
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