Muslim men say they alarmed police after seeing New York shooter a block away

By Mucahit Oktay

NEW YORK (AA) – Muslim young men who caught Frank James, the suspect in the New York City subway shooting, came to the police station to testify on Wednesday.

A young man named Mohammad told the press after leaving the police station that they had seen James in Manhattan's East Village neighborhood with his cousin and friend and that they had informed the police just one block away.

"When we saw this guy, we were like between 70 to 80% sure is it him, or not," he said. "So, we called up the picture… on our phones we saw the picture, so we confirmed between three of us: 'Oh that’s the guy, that’s him, 100% sure that’s him.'"

"So, we were ready to call the police. We saw the two guys from the police department pulling up on the street. So we go to them, we told them: 'Oh, he is like one block away, he is over there wearing a cap, carrying his bag.' And we went with them and catch him right away," he added.

Mohammad's cousin stated that they arrived in Manhattan from New Jersey in their vehicles and noticed the suspect on the street by coincidence, but they preferred to inform the police because they were concerned that there might be a gun in the bag he was carrying.

After the subway attacker suspect James was caught, the Muslim young men who came to the 9th Police Station in the nearby region where he was detained left after a short while, and New York police thanked them.

The man suspected of opening fire in a crowded New York City subway car has been taken into custody and charged with a terror-related offense, officials announced on Wednesday.

James was first identified as a person of interest in the wake of Tuesday's attack in Brooklyn. But authorities upgraded his status to suspect on Wednesday.

Authorities said the suspect donned a gas mask before taking two gas canisters from a bag and opening them, filling a subway car with smoke before opening fire.

In all, officials said, 33 shots were fired during the pandemonium that ensued as the train approached the 36th Street station in Sunset Park. Twenty-three people were injured from gunshots, smoke inhalation, or injuries sustained while attempting to flee.