Murders in the city’s subway system have increased by 60% this year, even as overall crime on the rails has decreased.
As of Sept. 8, eight people have been killed on subway cars or in stations, up from five during the same period last year, according to NYPD data.
The spike in murders is nearing the 25-year high set in 2022, with a total of 10 murders.
Between 1997 and 2020, there were never more than five murders in the subway in a single year, according to the earliest public NYPD data.
“It’s not a safe environment to be waiting for the train,” said Jakeba Dockery, whose husband, Richard Henderson, was fatally shot in January on a 3 train in Brooklyn after attempting to break up a fight over loud music.
“It just feels evil,” she told The Post.
The most recent violent subway death occurred on Sept. 5 when grocer Freddie Weston, 47, was shot near the MetroCard booth at the Rockaway Avenue station in Brooklyn.
The increase in murders continues despite initiatives to reduce crime on the subway, such as deploying National Guardsmen and additional NYPD officers to monitor the system.
Total subway crime has decreased by nearly 6% this year compared to the same period in 2023, with robberies down about 18% and felony assaults dropping nearly 5%, according to an NYPD spokesperson.
Violent crime remains above pre-pandemic levels, and passengers continue to be concerned about safety on the subway.
Joseph Giacalone, an adjunct professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, attributes the persistence in murders to a “worn-out” police force and a brain-drain of veteran transit officers.
Dockery and her daughter have decided to no longer use the subway, opting for a car to navigate the city instead.
“I don’t do the MTA,” she said. “Between the anger of violent straphangers and the mentally ill, I can’t.”
