Bystander shot in head as New York police tackle fare-evader

Bystander shot in head as NY police tackle armed subway fare-evader

New York authorities have made reducing crime on the subway and buses a top priority following a series of violent attacks, robberies and murders. A crackdown on fare evasion is part of that push.

Police said officers challenged a suspected fare-evader, then shot him after he threatened them with a knife. His condition is critical.

The man was in critical condition after the shooting at Sutter Avenue L station in Brooklyn on Sunday afternoon. Three others, including the suspect, were wounded.

New York police have defended their actions after a bystander was shot in the head as two officers tackled a fare-evader armed with a knife in a busy subway station.

But critics have questioned how the pursuit of a minor offender escalated into the use of lethal force in a crowded space.

Tom Donlon, the city's interim police commissioner, ordered a full investigation but added: "Make no mistake, the events that occurred... were the results of an armed perpetrator".

The officers involved have not been named by police.

The bystander who was shot and had critical injuries has been identified in New York media as Gregory Delpeche. The New York Daily News reports that he was on the way to his job at a local hospital, which he's had for more than 20 years. The wound to his head has left him with possible brain damage, his family told the outlet.

Jennvine Wong, of the Legal Aid Society Cop Accountability Project, told The New York Times that police had endangered lives after choosing "in an enclosed space ... to use disproportionate force".

In a press conference, NYPD Chief of Department Jeffrey Maddrey said that two officers had seen a man - later identified as Derrell Mickles - go through barriers without paying.

Mr Maddrey said body camera footage showed the suspect threatening to "kill" the officers if they followed him, before confronting them with a knife.

The footage shows a train pull into the station as the confrontation escalates. The officers fired Tasers at the man - to no effect - as he attempted to board the train, before he jumped back to the platform.

"At one point, he is advancing on one of the officers with his knife," Mr Maddrey said. "The officer stands back, he draws his weapon, and both officers at this point fire."

Two bystanders, a police officer and the suspect were hit.

Mr Maddrey said that the officer realised he had been shot in the armpit but continued to perform "life-saving measures" on the suspect. Both officers then realised that two bystanders had also been hit by gunfire. Two other officers then arrived and aided the wounded.

Officials said that the suspect had a record of 20 previous arrests and a significant history of mental illness.

Janno Liever, the chief executive of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, said that the incident "started because somebody wanted to come to the transit system with a weapon, somebody who... had a history of crime and a history of violence and even gun charges".