CCTV of Suspects on Subway

Not in New York City.

In Berlin.

Never in New York City!

If there were CCTV in the New York subway operating 24/7 how could the victims of crime be blamed for their own deaths?

The MTA and the NYPD have CCTV installed at turnstiles where actual attacks on citizens do not occur. Not on platforms or in cars or in other public places.

An Actual Surfer!!

From Daily News

Subway surfer decapitated in Manhattan after falling from train

 ...Surfing on the side of a subway car proved deadly for a man in the West Village on Saturday, officials said.

From the New York Post

A man was decapitated Saturday after he fell between the cars of a moving subway train, officials said.

The unidentified man was between two cars of a southbound F train when he fell in the tunnel north of the West 4th Street station in Greenwich Village at about 3:05 p.m., said officials.

 ... On the West 4th Street platform ... [a witness] saw some police officers talking with several teenagers urging them not to pose video of the incident on social media. “I guess they were videotaping what they were doing – subway surfing or whatever. I guess one of them fell off,” [he] said.

A group of teenagers videotaping one of their pals surfing during the afternoon.

That fits the pattern.

What does not fit the pattern?

Men in their twenties "surfing" during late night hours.

Case number one.

And case number two.

Who do you believe, common sense or the NYPD/MTA?  
 

Teen found dead on Bronx train tracks at 2:30 am

A 17-year-old boy in the Bronx was found dead with burns on his body on the northbound 6 train tracks early Tuesday, police said.

A 911 call led police to an unconscious teen inside the Whitlock Avenue Train Station in Foxhurst near Lowell St. around 2:30 a.m., cops said.

The boy had burn marks on his torso and paramedics declared him dead at the scene. Medical Examiners [!] carried the body out of the Foxhurst train station. His identity and cause of death were not immediately known.

 ... As of last Wednesday, 44 people have been killed by train this year — either maliciously or by taking their own lives. A man lost his toes early Monday after a pal pushed him into an oncoming train in Chelsea.

What are the odds that the NYPD has alerted all its detectives to this unwitnessed violent death, ordering them to use their CI's (confidential informants) who may have "heard something" about an early morning attack that ended in this death? My opinion: zero.

More opinion: the Transit Bureau of the NYPD has established a record of ensuring that mysterious violent deaths are never treated as possible homicides.

More opinion: based on my daily reading of news sites, how many of those 44 killings were even mentioned by any news media. My estimate: fewer than one-half. If the media is not informed of the death by the MTA or the NYPD they will not report it.

A few related postings:

Why Do So Many "Accidents" Occur When there are so few Witnesses?

Investigation Complete!

Another Late-Night Surfer

Does the NYPD Fully Scrutinize all Violent Deaths?

MTA Usually Pays Nothing for People Hit by Trains

No Video of Three AM Attack.

Teen Attacked by Four Men, Robbed of iPhone at TriBeCa Subway Stop: NYPD

A teen was punched by four attackers who stole his iPhone 6 as he rode the E train, police said.

The 19-year-old told police he was surrounded by four men at the Canal Street stop on the northbound train at about 3:30 a.m. on Oct. 22. The men grabbed his phone along with $200 after hitting him several times in his face.

The group then fled the train. 

Police were still investigating the incident.

When attacks happened in cities whose transit police are devoted to protecting the public and not to protecting the civil attorneys concerned about law suits, the police have ensured that crime sites are covered by surveillance cameras and the police release videos of actual crimes. It has happened in Philadelphia, Chicago, Philadelphia (again), London, Moscow, Moscow (again) and Washington DC.

But never in New York.  Thanks to the Transit Bureau headed by Joseph Fox.

Just for laughs, here's a quote from the Transit Bureau's home page:

It is the mission of the Transit Bureau to ensure the safety and order of all persons on the New York City rapid transit system, to reduce the fear and apprehension of the riding public, and to serve as the Police Department’s primary provider of police services to the transit system.

Another late-night "surfer"

Subway surfer killed while trying to ride on top of F train

A subway surfer was killed in Brooklyn Wednesday morning when he tried to climb on top of a train, police said.

The unidentified man was between the cars of a southbound F train trying to climb on top when he was clipped and fell at the Fourth Ave./Ninth St. station around 4:45 a.m., cops said.

He died at the scene, officials said.

Southbound F and G trains were bypassing the station Wednesday morning as police investigated.

I don't believe this man was trying to "surf."

I think two or more thugs forced him between cars and then lifted him up and held him elevated until his head struck an obstruction and he was killed.

They have done the same thing before, also in Brooklyn and also in the very late hours.

What do the police really think?

It is my opinion that they also are convinced both these men were murdered but their bosses are beholden to the MTA and the MTA would rather see murderers get away with their crimes than risk losing a few dollars in a law suit.

Congratulations to the NYPD's Transit Bureau!

Congratulations, New York media for swallowing such a load of manure!

Read this for other late hours "accidents."

Man Slashed on Platform

Brutal Brooklyn couple beats, slashes man on subway platform

A 21-year-old man was slashed in the head, face and chest during a clash with a violent couple at a Brooklyn train station, officials said.

On Monday, police released surveillance images of the two attackers in the hopes the public can identify them.

The victim got into an argument with a man and a woman inside the Prospect Park subway station about 5:15 a.m. Sunday, cops said.

As the argument heated up, the victim was punched in the face by the man. When the victim fought back, the woman crept up behind him with a blade and slashed him in the head, face, chest and hands, officials said.

Perhaps the next time these thugs will be smarter and simply push an unconscious victim onto the tracks.

If they do, the NYPD Transit Bureau will ensure that the death will be called an "accident" and not a single detective will be looking for the two murderers.

Vicious Beating in Bronx Subway

Cops arrest man suspected in vicious beating of couple at Bronx subway station, searching for twin brother

By  Rocco Parascandola (email)

Their mother must be so proud.

A 25-year-old man has been busted in the beating and choking of a couple on a Bronx subway platform — and now cops are looking for his twin brother.

Terrifying video police released earlier this month captured the Sept. 12 attack, which took place around 6 a.m. in the 149th St.-Grand Concourse station on the 4 line.

 Dumb twins.
 
Track homicides are guaranteed "perfect" crimes.

Just do it when there are no witnesses and the NYPD will announce "There's no evidence of foul play." 

Another "Walker" Killed in the Off-Hours

QUEENS — A man was found dead after being hit by an A train in the Rockaways on Wednesday night, police said.

The man, whose identity wasn't immediately released, was on the tracks when a northbound A train struck him near Rockaway Freeway and Beach 25th Street, about 11 p.m., an NYPD spokesman said Thursday morning.

He was pronounced dead at the scene, police said.

Investigators don't suspect his death involved any criminality, they said.

LINK

Begin sarcasm.

Psychiatrists of the world, please pay attention!

For some unknown reason, people who use the New York subway system during off-hours (such as 11 PM in Rockaway) do utterly crazy things. They decide to take off their shoes and  "stroll"  barefooted or to "surf" on the roof  of a moving train or "snooze" down there on the tracks.

Please, psychiatrists, help our dedicated civil servants to understand this strange malady.

End sarcasm

Guess When This "Accident" Happened

Man dies after falling onto subway tracks at Upper East Side station

The MTA Lawyers' Best Friend (a/k/a the NYPD's Transit Bureau) strikes again.

Cops said the unidentified victim was seen unsteady on his feet at the 77 St./Lexington Ave. station at about 5:30 a.m. He walked up to the edge of the platform, pitched forward and landed on the tracks, according to authorities. He died at the scene

 ... Authorities said the man was not hit by subway cars after he fell off the tracks, but died from other causes.

I tell ya, there's something really strange goin' on in that New York City subway system.

People keep falling on tracks, taking sleep breaks on tracks or deciding to surf on top of moving trains.

But they only do that when there are no witnesses around.

Weird.

(Note the wishy-washy language. He "was seen" being "unsteady" on his feet. No mention of a witness. And, of course, no surveillance cameras are in place to record this "accident" because the MTA lawyers' don't want those annoying things in places where they can record homicidal attacks.)

Related links.

Why Do So Many "Accidents" Occur When there are so few Witnesses?

No Cameras? No Problem!

NYPD Cameras Record a Crime.

Not in the subway.

Never in the subway.

The NYPD's Transit Bureau seems to place satisfying the MTA lawyers above protecting the riding public.

MTA lawyers would not like cameras that record unwitnessed violent crimes. Cameras would interfere with their "blame the victim" tactic, a very successful tactic.

That seems to be the only plausible reason for the failure to install cameras where they would be able to record subway assaults.

But there are no MTA attorneys involved when crimes occur on the street.

So in this case there are NYPD cameras and the assault was recorded:

Gazi Rahman, 46, was walking on Hillside Avenue near Parsons Boulevard at around 8 p.m. on May 7 when he was approached by Christopher Porr, 39, of Fresh Meadows, according to the criminal complaint and an NYPD video shared by his lawyer.

From an article by Katie Honan (her email address: khonan@dnainfo.com) in DNAInfo.com. 

I wish Mr. Rahman good luck and hope that some day people assaulted on subway platforms, including those pushed to their deaths on the tracks, will have their crimes recorded by NYPD cameras.

MTA usually pays nothing for people hit by trains

I believe this 2013 Daily News article by Pete Donahue is worth reading in its entirety.

The MTA doesn’t issue an apology when someone is hit by a subway train — and it doesn’t whip out the checkbook, either.

About 90% of the 92 “man-under” lawsuits that were resolved in the last five years ended in the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s favor, according to a breakdown by the MTA.

The MTA didn’t pay a dime in 73 of those cases. It dispensed with another nine cases with paltry go-away payments averaging $40,000, according to the authority’s information. Five big cases did result in payoffs totaling $33 million.

I wonder if the MTA lawyers would be that successful without the NYPDs immediate and seemingly automatic conclusion that "criminality is not suspected" in unwitnessed track fatalities.

Although Donahue (his email address) does not mention the NYPD Transit Bureau in this article, if its commander places the interests of the MTA above his duty to investigate suspicious violent deaths that would explain the utterly bizarre occurrence of so-many late night fatal "accidents." 

Another Late Night "Accident"

Ho hum.

 Man struck, killed by 1 train in Washington Heights

An unidentified man was fatally struck by a train in Washington Heights early Friday, witnesses and police said.

The man was found lying on the tracks of the northbound 1 train at the 168th St. subway station, police said, when he was hit. Paramedics arrived to the scene, but the man couldn't be saved.

"The guy fell and I guess the train couldn't stop," said a witness, who didn't want to give his name.

The victim's name has not been released pending family notification, officials said.

No criminality is suspected, police said.

Another article:  Man Lying on Tracks Fatally Struck by 1 Train in WaHi, Police Say

with this additional detail:

The 51-year-old man ...was on the tracks [at] about 1 a.m

Just another wacky middle-aged passenger doing what the NYPD claims is normal in the very late hours: putting himself in harm's way

Did that anonymous "witness" actually see the victim fall or was that just an NYPD-encouraged surmise?



Note to the victim's family: your chances of suing the MTA successfully are zero.

As I said, ho hum.

Man Struck by Train While "Lying on Tracks"

 Man Hit by Train Injures Leg in Park Slope, Police Say

 
By Aiden Gardiner

BROOKLYN — A man's leg was injured when he was hit by a train while lying in the subway tracks of the Fourth Avenue-Ninth Street station Tuesday morning, police said.

The man, who is in his 50s, was lying in the tracks about 4:48 a.m., when he was hit, an NYPD spokesman said.

and ...

Investigators don't believe he's the victim of a crime, an NYPD spokesman said.

The actions of this man confirm that--according to the NYPD--many people who use the subway in the dead of night behave most strangely, putting themselves at risk of injury or worse.

Of course, the management of the MTA, with the apparent concurrence of top police officials, have ensured that there are no surveillance cameras installed, cameras that could have recorded how this victim ended up on the tracks. And the near-instantaneous conclusion by the NYPD that no crime was committed follows a years-long pattern that no doubt pleases the MTA managers including, especially, their attorneys.

One wonders what this victim--who "suffered a leg injury"--would say to investigators who were not members of the NYPD.

Sexual Assault Prevented by Surveillance Camera!

By Audrey Williams and Tina Moore 

A woman was saved from a predawn sex assault on the Christopher Street PATH platform Sunday when a security officer saw it unfold on a surveillance camera — and demanded over a loudspeaker that the attacker stop.

The stunned man complied, halting his attack on the 31-year-old victim at about 4:45 a.m.

The same PATH Security Operations officer quickly summoned Port Authority police, and the suspect, Andres Rodriguez, 33, of Hackensack, was arrested.

The woman was treated at an area hospital.

Here's the link.

Wow!

A surveillance camera prevents a violent crime in a New York City rail transit facility.

How could this happen if I claim the NYPD is opposed to anti-crime cameras?

Am I wrong?

Should I apologize?

Sorry folks, no apology will be issued.

PATH stations are NOT under the control of the NYPD.

The Port Authority Police is a separate department.

Person struck by F train in Queens

As reported in The Daily News: 

A person is in critical condition after being struck a train in Queens early Sunday, police said.

The victim was hit by the F train just after the Parsons Blvd. train station at 2:09 a.m. in Jamaica, officials said. It's not immediately known if the victim was taken to a nearby hospital.

Cops were on the scene investigating if the person was the victim of a crime.

1. The early morning hours are favored by the thugs who prey on passengers.

2.  The "police" investigating were likely from the Transit Bureau.

3.  Based on their record I think the police will conclude there was no crime, confident that there are no surveillance cameras that recorded the incident.

4.  If there are no further media reports on this event, be assured that the police did their job: the victim will be entirely responsible for his/her injuries. The MTA lawyers will be pleased.
      

Vic Nicastro for New York Daily

Surveillance Video of Subway Rapist!

Never in New York City.

But in Washington DC:

According to an arrest document signed by Metro Transit Detective C.H. Dorrity, investigators used high-definition surveillance video inside the Glenmont station, records from the suspect’s Metro SmarTrip card, and the woman’s recollection to identify Hicks.

The MTA and the NYPD have a strong aversion to cameras in the subway.

Their absence has even been noted in The Daily News and The New York Times.

I am convinced that the main reason NYC officials do not want anti-crime cameras is that they would interfere with their "see no evil" approach whenever unwitnessed track deaths occur. Without cameras the police can blame the dead person as they did in twenty-five (!) cases in 2012.

Of course the MTA has installed lots of cameras aimed at preventing the one crime they consider more important than murderous assaults on passengers: there are lots of cameras aimed at potential fare-beaters. 

Investigation Complete! The Dead Man Was Responsible for His Death!

Yesterday I posted an article from the Daily News with the headline "Police Investigating Death of Straphanger Found Between Subway Cars: NYPD."

Today the News has posted a new article with this quite different headline "Subway-surfing man, 24, dies after hitting head on F train, losing consciousness." I quote the article in full:

"A 24-YEAR-OLD man was killed after hitting his head while “surfing,” possibly atop a train rumbling through Brooklyn early Friday, authorities said.

"James A. Rubio was found unconscious, lying between two cars, by a passenger on a Queens-bound F train at the Jay St./MetroTech station in Downtown Brooklyn about 2:30 a.m., police said.

"Rubio, who lived in Queens, was rushed to Brooklyn Hospital with head trauma, but could not be saved.

"An official for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority said the doomed man hit his head while riding on the outside of a subway car — possibly on top, officials said.

""Rubio hit his head on a low hanging piece of metal as the train entered a tunnel", officials said.

"An autopsy has been scheduled, officials said.

"The MTA has repeatedly warned commuters about the dangers of surfing along the side or on top of subway cars."

Here are my questions and observations:

Did anyone see Mr Rubio climb up to the roof of the car, or is the "he was surfing" explanation a product of the NYPD's Transit Bureau?

What investigation was conducted? Were passengers on the train interviewed? Did anyone look for blood on any obstruction, something a "surfer" may have struck?

It is my impression that "surfing" in the subway is mainly practiced by teenagers who do it in groups. Mr. Rubio, a 24-year-old, was apparently traveling alone.


Subway criminals like to attack during the off hours when there are few witnesses. Mr Rubio was killed at 2:30 am.

If the police file a report claiming he was killed while "surfing" what are the chances that his family could successfully sue the MTA for damages? (How do you spell zero?) As I've already noted, the MTA is quite proud of its record of  rarely paying in suits by survivors of lethal subway "accidents."

I would love to know more about Mr Rubio. Was he employed? Did he have any history of "surfing?"

Added on May 10, 2006:

He was an electrician, per the New York Post.

Deciding to ride on top of a subway car while traveling alone at 2:30 in the morning is just the sort of thing an employed skilled laborer would not do.  

Police Investigating Subway Death

Police Investigating Death of Straphanger Found Between Subway Cars: NYP

by Trevor Kapp

Police are probing the death of a straphanger whose body was found with head trauma between cars of a Coney Island-bound F train early Friday morning.

The 24-year-old man was discovered between the cars at the Jay Street-MetroTech station around 2:30 a.m., police said.

 ... The man was transported to Brooklyn Hospital, where he died, the NYPD said.

Observation:

1. Thanks to the MTA and the NYPD's Transit Bureau, there are no cameras on New York"s  subway trains; the criminals responsible for this man's death will probably not be arrested even if the Transit Bureau, headed by Joseph Fox, does conduct an "investigation."

2. If the persons who attacked this young man had thrown him off the train would the NYPD have announced an "investigation" or would they simply have blamed the victim for having walked between the cars as they did in the case of  Lorraine O'Garro?

3. Once more an unconscious passenger didn't fall from a moving train, putting "lie!" to the NYPD/MTA oft-repeated assurance that conscious passengers routinely fall to their deaths while walking between cars.

4. Despite the routine classification of all un-witnessed track killings as "accidents"the post-midnight hours are favored by subway killers which prompts this question: does Joseph Fox tell his young-adult relatives that the subways are safe to use at all hours?  Does the Transit Chief actually believe all those "accidents" were accidents?

 

Twenty-three Thousand Surveillance Cameras Installed!

A report of a recent assault on a young woman in a Chicago train includes a statement by the Chicago Transit Authority that included the following paragraph.

CTA has more than 23,000 security cameras across all stations, buses and trains; it's one of the few system-wide networks in the nation and has proved to be an invaluable tool for police investigating crimes committed on or near CTA property. In fact, the cameras are a contributing factor behind the 25 percent decrease in crime reported across CTA properties in 2015 - the fourth straight year that crimes have decreased on the CTA.

Why doesn't the leadership of the NYPD demand that thousands of cameras be installed in the New York transit system?

Here's what I think: such cameras would record criminals killing victims in track homicides, jeopardizing the "no evidence of foul play" mantra automatically played by the NYPD when such violent deaths occur and there are no civilian witnesses. Cameras would make life difficult for the MTA's lawyers (it would be really hard to convince a jury that a murder victim was responsible for his own death) and I think keeping those lawyers happy is more important to NYPD's leadership than is protecting passengers from violent, even murderous, thugs.

Man fatally struck by elevated train in Bronx

by Keldy Ortiz

A man was fatally hit by a train in the Bronx early Thursday, police said.

The victim was on the tracks when he was smashed by an elevated southbound 6 train at the Morris Ave.-Soundview station on Westchester Ave. in Soundview at 2:43 a.m., according to officials.

...  Police do not believe the person was a victim of a crime, officials said.

Vic Nicastro/for New York Daily News

A pair of boots, believed to those of the victim, were found on (sic) two blocks away from the station on Westchester Ave. after the incident.

Let's try to understand what NYPD says happened.

Man decides to remove boots.

Then he decides to "go for a walk" on elevated tracks.

What NYPD has ruled out: This man was crime a victim and his killer(s) stole the boots but soon discarded them. Thanks to the lack of surveillance cameras there is no record of what actually happened.

http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/bronx/man-fatally-struck-elevated-6-train-bronx-article-1.2609601

Man Fatally Struck by Train

 By Aidan Gardiner

MANHATTAN — A man laying in the track bed of the 77th Street subway station was fatally struck by a train ahead of Tuesday morning's rush-hour commute, police said.

He was hit by a northbound train about 4:30 a.m. in the station near Lexington Avenue, an NYPD spokesman said.

He was pronounced dead at the scene, police said.

It wasn't immediately clear how he came to be lying in the tracks. Police are still investigating, they said.

Begin sarcasm.

The NYPD and the MTA will soon release the video tape of this dead-of-the-night event using the anti-crime cameras that exist throughout the system.

The New York police are well aware that the late night hours are favored by criminals who attack lone victims and they assure the public that if this was a homicide the entire force will soon be looking for the perpetrator (perpetrators?) once identity is established. 

End sarcasm. 

An important and enduring sign that protecting the MTA takes precedence over protecting passengers (or apprehending criminals) is the lack of surveillance cameras that could record violent subway crimes and aid the authorities in prosecuting perpetrators. The lack of such cameras enables MTA attorneys, assisted by cooperative police, to blame the victim … and allows violent criminals to go unpunished.Other subway systems that are thoroughly surveilled by cameras have recorded and released to the public acts of criminal violence in Philadelphia, Chicago, Philadelphia (again), London, Moscow, Moscow (again) and Washington DC.

Since the 9/11 attack, with the encouragement and financial support of the federal government, the MTA has been installing anti-terrorist surveillance cameras. But even those cameras may threaten the MTA’s ability to blame victims; in at least one case plaintiff's attorneys have asked the court to order release of recordings by anti-terror cameras.

 

The Case of the Corpse That Did Not Fall

Although this article from The New York Post emphasizes that the man was urinating from a moving train while between cars, what I consider most interesting that he died from a fall and that his corpse remained on the train, between cars.

Think about that the next time the MTA/NYPD announce that an unwitnessed death occurred because the (live) victim simply fell from the train.

Homeless Man Walks on Elevated Tracks

I recently came across a clipping from The Times of April 17, 1990 describing another "accidental" death of a person who was "walking" on the tracks ... at 4:15 AM.

This time it was not on underground tracks but on tracks elevated above the Bronx streets and the man, who was homeless, was "walking" barefoot.

For anyone not familiar with them those portions of the New York transit rail system that are elevated present a risk not present in the underground section; in addition to the possibility of being struck by a train, a "walker" could be killed by falling to the streets below.

Although I do not doubt that this man was barefoot when he was killed, I simply do not believe he was walking on the tracks. I suspect that is a falsehood intended to convince by implication that "there is no evidence of foul play."

Here is an image of The Times clipping.

Does the NYPD "Fully Scrutinize" All Subway Deaths?

In March 1998 I wrote the then Police Commissioner Howard Safir to express my concerns about the handling of unwitnessed track deaths in the subway.

On the 24th of March I received a response from William H. Allee, Chief of Detectives for the entire NYPD which, since 1995, also included personnel formerly part of the Transit Police Department. Below is a copy of his letter which I have modified only to delete my postal address.

 

One wonders whether Chief Allee would consider that NYPD detectives did "thorough and fully scrutinize" the twenty-five track deaths that occurred in 2012. 

Or does the NYPD continue the long-established practice of the former Transit Police Department detectives and automatically ignore the possibility of homicide whenever an unwitnessed track death occurs?

Judged by the rapidity in which the NYPD advised the media (in most cases before the Medical Examiner even began the autopsy) that "Foul Play Wasn't Suspected" I believe that it does.