New York Subway Shooting Suspect Caught,Threatened with life imprisonment

Press release of Frank James' arrest. (Twitter/@NYPDPC)

JAKARTA - The man suspected of detonating a smoke bomb and firing into a New York City subway car, wounding 23 people, was arrested on Wednesday on federal charges of violently attacking the mass transit system.

Frank Robert James, 62, was arrested in Manhattan, about 8 miles from the site of Tuesday's attack, after authorities tracked him down with the help of clues from residents, some of whom posted sightings on social media, police said.

James was arrested 30 hours after the attack, which occurred during a busy morning commute, as the N-bound train bound for Manhattan was entering an underground station in Brooklyn's Sunset Park area.

"My fellow New Yorkers, we arrested him. We arrested him," Mayor Eric Adams said at the news conference announcing the arrest.

"We will protect the people of this city and arrest those who believe they can bring terror to New Yorkers every day."

James was arrested without incident in Manhattan's East Village neighborhood after he was spotted, first at a fast food restaurant and then on the street, by residents who recognized him from wanted posters and relayed his location to authorities, police said.

James, a Bronx native with recent addresses in Philadelphia and Milwaukee, had nine previous encounters with police in New York and three times in New Jersey, according to the New York Police Department (NYPD).

A 10-page criminal charge, filed by federal prosecutors Wednesday in US District Court in Brooklyn, charges James with one count of committing a terrorist or other violent attack on the mass transportation system. If found guilty, he could face life in prison, officials said.

He is scheduled to run his first trial on Thursday, the US Attorney's Office in Brooklyn said.

James is accused of detonating two smoke bombs inside the subway, moments before shooting a fellow passenger with a semi-automatic pistol. The gun, purchased in 2011, was later recovered from the scene, along with three magazines of ammunition, a torch, an axe, a bag of fireworks, and a container of gasoline, according to police and court documents.

Police said 10 people were shot, five of whom were in critical but stable condition on Wednesday. Thirteen others were injured in the rush to escape the smoke-filled train. All victims are expected to be safe.

The attack is the latest in a series of violent crimes that have terrified passengers on America's largest metropolitan transit system, including instances of passengers being pushed onto subway tracks from station platforms.