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Subway crime down, officials say

Matthew Fischetti on February 1, 2023

By Matthew Fischetti

Mayor Eric Adams and Governor Kathy Hochul hold a press conference in the Fulton Street Subway Station to announce significant progress in making the subway system safer on Friday, January 27, 2023. Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office

Major subway crime has dropped by 16 percent since last October, city and state officials announced last week.

At a press conference in Manhattan, Governor Hochul and Adams announced that the crime rate has reached pre pandemic levels, which the electeds credited to the launch of their “Cops, Cameras and Care program.” The plan added 1,2000 cops to the subways over 300 subway stops across the city and added additional trainings for NYPD and MTA employees.

The Atlantic Terminal station and the Sutphin-Archer Station in Brooklyn and Queens will have MTA police at the station, “freeing up roughly 100 NYPD officers for deployments at other priority transit locations on trains and in stations,” per the announcement.

In 2019, the rate of crime was 1.5 crimes per million rider; In 2022, the rate was 2.3 crimes per million riders; and in 2023 the ridership adjusted rate is only 1.7 crimes per million riders, according to figures unveiled by officials on Friday.

“So, despite all these facts, I can’t tell New Yorkers they should feel safe. I’m not going to even do that,” Governor Hochul said. “But the data is showing that New Yorkers are telling us they feel safer, and that’s what I’m going to pay attention to.”

MTA honcho Janno Lieber  said that through survey findings, the department found that around 60 percent of riders said they felt safe in November compared to previous results finding only around 40 percent of riders said the same in October.

100 cameras are currently planned to be installed across subway cars as part of the Governor and Mayor’s plans. The entire 6,500 car fleet is scheduled to have cameras installed by late 2024.

“We had a billion people that rode our system last year, but we have 3.9 million daily riders, an average of six crimes a day. It didn’t matter if those numbers were there. The reality was that people said they felt unsafe,” said Mayor Adams. “So we had to have a dual approach. We had to deal with how people felt and we had to deal with the actual six crimes, felony crimes we were having on average a day, and that was our dual approach.

Governor Hochul also announced that the state will create 25 more bed-units, to bring the total of inpatient beds to 50. The beds are a key part of critical time intervention, a model used by clinicians for decades that helps transition people during turbulent times. The model was first developed to provide care for  individuals facing chronic homelessness.

Rego Park man indicted for brutal subway attack

Jessica Meditz on December 9, 2022

A Rego Park man was indicted and arraigned today for the alleged subway attack of a woman back in November, Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced.

Abel Pita Aviles, 36, of 67th Avenue, is accused of robbing and groping a woman at knifepoint inside an M train subway car in Dutch Kills.

According to the charges, on Nov. 11, at around 8:45 a.m., Aviles approached the 24-year-old female victim inside an M train subway car approaching the 36th Street station.

The attack occurred on an M train car approaching the 36th St. Station. (Photo: Google Maps)

He’s accused of pointing a knife at the victim while demanding money and her cell phone, as well as pinning her down to the subway seat and forcibly groping her before fleeing on foot. The woman did hand over her phone and cash.

Aviles was apprehended shortly thereafter on Nov. 15.

“This shameful attack inside our subway system will not go unanswered. My office will use all tools at our disposal to protect commuters from violence inside our trains,” Katz said in a statement. “Every New Yorker should expect to be able to travel safely using public transportation. The defendant has been indicted on serious charges and is in custody.”

Aviles was arraigned before a Queens Supreme Court Judge on a four-count indictment charging him with robbery in the first degree, sexual abuse in the first degree, forcible touching and criminal possession of a weapon in the fourth degree.

He was ordered to return to court on Jan. 17, 2023.

If convicted, Aviles faces up to 25 years in prison.

The investigation was conducted by members of the NYPD Transit Bureau’s Special Victims Division.

Fatal shooting at Parsons Blvd/Archer Ave subway station

webadmin on April 27, 2022

A 24-year-old Brooklyn man was fatally shot in the chest inside the Parsons Boulevard/Archer Avenue subway station on Monday afternoon.

Police say that at 4:30 p.m. on Monday, a verbal dispute quickly turned physical, eventually leading to five shots being fired inside the subway station.

NYPD Transit Chief Jason Wilcox said that the victim, Marcus Bethea, was standing near the token booth when the suspect initially approached him. When police arrived, first aid was rendered and Bethea was transferred to Jamaica Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

“During the course of that fight, the suspect pulled out a firearm and fired several rounds that hit the victim in his torso,” Wilcox said during a Monday night briefing on the incident.

Camera footage was captured inside the subway station, police say, and it is currently under review by the department.

There is no arrest as of press time. Police urge anyone with information to call Crimestoppers at 1-800-7577 (TIPS).

The right to go

glendaleregstg on October 14, 2021

Dear Editor,
In June 2021, then-NYC Transit president Sarah Feinberg said she would like to reopen subway station bathrooms as quickly as possible. Three months later, MTA Chairman Janno Lieber said there are no immediate plans to reopen the existing 76 bathrooms inside the city’s 472 subway stations.
How many NJ Transit and PATH station bathrooms are open, closed or never had a bathroom to begin with? I guess when riding the subways, Lieber has never had the urge to go. Perhaps his bladder is stronger than most riders.
Until the early 1960s, subway riders respected authority. There was a ten-cent fee to use station bathrooms. That generation of riders did not litter, spit, or urinate on subway platforms or cars.
Before COVID-19, riders were always reluctant to use subway station bathrooms, even when available. Many stations had no working facilities or were closed. No one wanted to deal with the lack of toilet paper, soap or hot water, unhinged doors to stalls or finding a mess left behind by the previous patron.
Who wanted to find others using it as a safe place for consumption of drugs or sex? Homeless people afraid to go to shelters end up using the bathroom sink to shower in an attempt to maintain hygiene.
Why not assign a matron to each male and female bathroom? Ask any local business, college or hospital to adopt an adjacent station bathroom to help cover the costs of staffing. In exchange, give the sponsor free advertising space at the station.
If necessary, charge a nominal fee to use the facility. Reopening secure, safe subway station bathrooms with adequate supplies of toilet paper, soap and hot water would be one way to attract several million riders who have yet to return.
Sincerely,
Larry Penner
Great Neck

Mentally speaking

glendaleregstg on October 14, 2021

Dear Editor
Anthonia Egregbara, who is accused of pushing a woman into an arriving subway at Times Square, is reportedly mentally ill and has been arrested a number of times for attacking others over the last ten years.
She was repeatedly released because of reformed bail laws. Why was this woman allowed to walk the streets without being treated for her condition?
We have many people like Egregbara who are mentally ill and a danger to the riding public. More needs to be done to help the mentally ill from hurting themselves and others.
Sincerely,
Frederick R. Bedell, Jr.
Bellerose

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