Brooklyn Subway Shooting: Grandfather Killed Trying To Break Up Fight

New York police are searching for the gunman who is responsible for the fatal shooting of a man in a Brooklyn subway after the victim tried to break up a fight over loud music.

The incident occurred on Sunday and police sources said that the victim intervened in an argument before he was shot and killed. The shooting occurred at around 8:30 p.m. on a No. 3 train approaching the Franklin Avenue-Medgar Evers College station in Crown Heights.

Brooklyn Subway Shooting

(Photo : Charly TRIBALLEAU / AFP) (CHARLY TRIBALLEAU/AFP via Getty Images)
New York authorities are investigating the fatal shooting of a man during an incident in a Brooklyn subway after the victim allegedly intervened in an argument.

It was reported that 45-year-old Richard Henderson was the victim and tried to intervene after seeing two other passengers arguing about music that was playing too loudly. Law enforcement authorities said that a witness got the conductor's attention and the train then skipped several stops to meet police at the station.

First responders who arrived at the scene found Henderson in the subway car and rushed him to Kings County Hospital. However, he was pronounced dead due to the severity of his injuries. The victim's brother said that he had just spoken with the victim on the phone and that Henderson told him he was leaving a friend's house after watching a football game, as per CBS News.

Henderson's death leaves behind a wife, three children, and two grandchildren. A neighbor said that the victim was a people person, was very friendly, and was able to get along with everybody that he was acquainted with.

Law enforcement officials are asking the public for any information that could lead to the arrest of the shooter. Professor Jeff Spinner-Halevim said that everywhere some random terrible thing happens.

He argued that people have no other choice but to learn to live with the difficulties of such situations. Spinner-Halevim also hoped that the United States had better gun control but he argued that it would take too big a shift in politics to happen.

The victim lived in a building that was a short distance away from the Franklin Avenue stop of the Brooklyn subway. Henderson's death also marks the first homicide of 2024 in the subway system, according to ABC7NY.

Gun Violence in New York

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) released a statement following the fatal shooting of Henderson. The agency expressed its condolences to the family of the victim, adding that the homicide was another sad reminder that gun violence has no place in the city.

The MTA noted that it was cooperating with law enforcement officials in the investigation to ensure that the perpetrator could be brought to justice. Prior to Henderson's death, he worked as a crossing guard at a private school in Manhattan.

The victim's wife, Jakeba Henderson said that her husband was known for standing up to bullies, adding that he died a hero, doing what he did, which was taking up for the weak. On top of being the first homicide in the subway system this year, officials have already recorded two train derailments.

One of the incidents left 26 people injured and led to significant service disruptions for several days that affected many residents. A teenage boy was also killed last week in what officials said was a "subway surfing" incident where individuals would ride atop cars, said the New York Times.