Group Who Tossed Bike Onto Astoria Subway Tracks Sought By Police

ASTORIA, QUEENS — Police are now looking for a group of five people, who they say are responsible for throwing a Citi Bike onto the subway tracks in the path of an oncoming train last weekend.

On the night of Sunday, Sept. 19, around 10:11 p.m., a group of five people — four men, and one woman — walked into the Steinway Street subway station in Astoria, and headed towards the R-train platform, police said.

The group then threw a Citi Bike down the subway stairs, where it rolled into the subway tracks. About ten minutes later, police reported, the first of two trains hit the bike, sending a flurry of sparks and plumes of smoke into the station, a video shows.

As smoke filled the station, straphangers on the other side of the tracks ran to escape the platform. Three minutes later, another train hit the bike, records show.

In a written statement to Patch, MTA Communications Director, Tim Minton, described the incident as an "attack on all of New York City that took place in the transit system."

"The miscreants who threw that bike in the path of an oncoming train should be prosecuted for their reckless disregard for safety of subway riders and workers," he added.

Police reported that no one in the car or station was hurt by the incident, but it could have been worse, they said.

"The collision caused significant sparking, damage to the train and the train’s emergency brake to engage, creating a substantial risk of injury or death to individuals on the train and the platform," according to the NYPD.

Police included a photo of the five people, who they say were responsible for throwing the bike onto the tracks.

The NYPD asked that information about this incident call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782) or submit a tip online or on Twitter.