James was charged in federal court with violating a law that prohibits terrorist and other violent attacks against a mass transportation system, according to Breon Peace, US Attorney for the Eastern District of New York. If convicted, he could spend life in prison, Peace said.
“As alleged, the defendant committed a heinous and premeditated attack on ordinary New Yorkers during their morning subway commute,” Peace said in a statement. “All New Yorkers have the right to expect that they will be safe as they travel throughout our great city and use our vital transportation systems.”
The timing of James’ appearance in federal court will be confirmed Thursday morning, according to US Attorney’s Office spokesman John Marzulli.
James had been named a “person of interest” by the New York City Police Department after possessions of his, including a key to a U-Haul he rented, were found at the scene. He was declared a suspect in the shooting Wednesday, and the city issued an emergency alert to residents saying James was “wanted” and asking for tips.
The 62-year-old called police tips hotline
Crime Stoppers Wednesday to tell authorities he was at a McDonald’s in the Lower East Side of Manhattan, two law enforcement sources told CNN.
The call dropped moments later and was
followed by a 911 call from another person who said they had spotted James, one of the two sources told CNN.
Police responded to the McDonald’s and did not find James, sources told CNN, but shortly after, officers came across a bystander who flagged James to them, a senior law enforcement source said. He
was arrested without incident.
“Like all New Yorkers, I am deeply grateful that the suspect in yesterday’s subway shooting has been apprehended and thankful for law enforcement and every first responder whose heroic efforts helped New York City respond to this horrific incident,” New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said Wednesday. “My heart is with all those who are injured, their loved ones, and the entire Sunset Park community.”
CNN has reached out to James’ federal defender for comment.
Shooting began en route to station
The shooting — which started
on a subway train as it approached the 36th Street station in Brooklyn’s Sunset Park neighborhoods during Tuesday’s morning commute — left at least 29 people with injuries ranging from gunshot wounds to smoke inhalation. Five remained hospitalized as of Wednesday evening.
The gunman fired at least 33 times and struck 10 people, according to NYPD Chief of Detectives James Essig. Officials have said none of the injuries appeared to be life-threatening.
James initially got on the subway’s N train at the Kings Highway Station at about 8:30 a.m. Tuesday, Essig said.
Hourari Benkada, 27, who was shot in the back of the knee, said he’d gotten into the last car of the N train and sat next to a man with a duffel bag who appeared to be wearing an MTA public transit vest. The man let off a “smoke bomb,” he said, and passengers
tried to flee as the man then began firing.
The shooting started about 20 seconds after the train left the 59th Street station and felt like it lasted for nearly two minutes, Benkada said.
After allegedly opening fire on the train, James got off at the 36th Street station, boarded an R train across the platform and rode to the 25th Street station stop, Essig said.
Less than an hour later, he was spotted boarding the subway at the 7th Avenue and 9th Street station, about 1.5 miles away, Essig added.
The photo gallery below contains graphic images. Viewer discretion is advised.
Evidence pointed investigators to James, officials say
Evidence
found by investigators led them to suspect James of the shooting, police said Wednesday.
Authorities at the scene found a Glock 9 mm handgun, three extended magazines, two detonated smoke grenades, two non-detonated smoke grenades, a hatchet and keys to a U-Haul van, Essig said.
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The gun found at the scene was purchased by James in Ohio in 2011, according to Essig. A credit card that was used to rent the U-Haul was also found, two law enforcement sources told CNN. Two officials told CNN they believe the gun jammed during the shooting.
The U-Haul van was rented by James, police said, and was recovered by police near the Kings Highway station after being cleared by the NYPD’s bomb squad.
Surveillance video showed James leaving the van Tuesday morning, according to a criminal complaint.
A neon construction jacket, which had been discarded on the subway platform, had a receipt for a storage unit in Philadelphia registered to James, the complaint states.
Federal prosecutors believe he visited the storage facility filled with ammunition and more weapons the evening before the Tuesday attack, according to court documents. A search of the storage facility revealed additional ammunition and “a threaded 9mm pistol barrel that allows for a silencer or suppresser to be attached.”
According to the complaint, law enforcement executed a search warrant at a Philadelphia apartment authorities believe James rented for 15 days beginning around March 28 and found “an empty magazine for a Glock handgun, a taser, a high-capacity rifle magazine and a blue smoke canister.”
Investigators did not find any other weapons or explosives in the van, two law enforcement officials said. The officials said it appeared James may have slept in the vehicle. They said a license plate reader detected the van driving over the Verrazzano Bridge from Staten Island into Brooklyn around 4 a.m. Tuesday.
Authorities also tracked the purchase of a gas mask to James through an eBay account, two officials said.
