Man Shot Dead on Midtown Manhattan Subway Platform; NYPD Searching for Masked Gunman
A man was shot and killed on a subway platform in Midtown Manhattan on Saturday afternoon, and the gunman escaped on foot, according to the NYPD.
The shooting happened at about 12:21 p.m. on the northbound E train platform at the 7th Avenue–53rd Street station, police said. The station sits a few blocks north of Times Square.
According to an NYPD statement released Saturday, “an unidentified individual approached an unidentified male on the northbound E train platform at the 53 Street/7 Avenue subway station,” then “displayed a firearm and discharged it, striking the victim once in the chest.” The shooter then left the station and ran north on Seventh Avenue, police said.
First responders performed CPR on the platform and rushed the man to Bellevue Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, according to the New York Post, citing sources. Police have not released his name.
WHAT POLICE SAY ABOUT THE MIDTOWN SUBWAY SHOOTING
NYPD Deputy Chief Keith Shine said the victim, the gunman and a third person had been in some kind of dispute on the platform, though the details were not yet clear, the Post reported. It is not known whether the gunman knew the victim, but police said the shooting was targeted.
“Nothing random between these two individuals,” an NYPD spokesperson told the Post at the scene.
An E train had just pulled in and opened its doors when the shots were fired, according to witnesses who spoke to the Post and Fox News Digital. Riders ran from the platform, and bystanders gave the wounded man chest compressions until help arrived, witnesses said.
Police had not recovered a weapon and warned that the suspect should be considered armed and dangerous, the Post reported. As of Saturday night, the NYPD said no arrests had been made and the investigation was ongoing.
THE SUSPECT POLICE ARE LOOKING FOR
The NYPD released surveillance images of the man it is seeking. Police said he was wearing a black face mask, a black puffy vest and a red tracksuit or red hoodie and red pants, according to Fox News Digital and amNY. amNY reported that police said he was also wearing black-and-white sneakers and carrying a backpack.
The NYPD asks anyone with information to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), or 1-888-57-PISTA (74782) for Spanish, or to submit tips online or on X at @NYPDTips.
The MTA rerouted C, D and E trains for much of Saturday afternoon while police worked the scene, amNY reported.
SUBWAY CRIME IN 2026
The killing was the seventh murder in the city’s transit system this year, up from four at the same point last year, according to the Post, citing data through last Sunday. That is an increase of 75%.
“Guns have no place in transit, which is why we’ve strongly supported New York State’s legal fight to make sure it’s illegal to carry them in the subway system,” Michael Kemper, the MTA’s chief security officer, said in a statement to the Post. He said the MTA was working with the NYPD and that those responsible “should face maximum consequences from the justice system.”
This is a developing story.
Sources: NYPD statement, as published by Fox News Digital (Oct. 17, 2026); New York Post (Oct. 17, 2026); amNY (Oct. 17, 2026). Cover and in-post backgrounds: 7th Avenue–53rd Street station file photos by IliketrainsR211T, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
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