A housing cop from the Bronx prevented a potential tragedy when he spotted a young subway surfer in foggy conditions atop a 7 train entering the Mets-Willets Point subway station last week.
Police Officer Huascar Ariasmercedes and Sergeant Daniel Newman, both assigned to Police Service Area 7 in the Bronx, were conducting a station inspection standing on the northbound platform just before 3:30 p.m.
As a Manhattan-bound 7 train approached the station, Ariasmercedes noticed a boy atop one of the subway cars. They ran to the southbound platform and signaled the train crew to hold the subway train in the station. They worked with the train crew and passengers on board to locate the 14-year-old boy who was arrested, an NYPD spokesman said, adding that a juvenile report was filed.
The subway surfing incident near Citi Field occurred nearly two weeks after a 16-year-old boy was injured after falling off an F train while subway surfing at the Briarwood subway station. The teenager suffered injuries to his legs. EMS transported him to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center, where he was listed in stable condition.
Six people were killed while subway surfing last year, including two teenagers in late October. From 2021 to 2022, social media fueled a 366% increase in subway surfing across the city. In response, the MTA launched its “Subway Surfing Kills—Ride Inside, Say Alive” campaign, which includes public service announcements in stations recorded by students, digital signage across stations’ student-created graphics and animations, and social media posts on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube, targeting young subway surfers.
