New York City police say they're looking to question five people after someone rolled a Citi Bike onto the path of two subway trains over the weekend.
Witnesses told investigators that four men and a woman gathered at Steinway Street subway station in Queens on Sunday, and one of the men was seen on surveillance camera throwing the bicycle from the street down into the mezzanine. A short time later, a southbound R train ran over the electric bike which appeared to explode and sent sparks flying, according to videos posted on social media.
An MTA spokesperson also confirmed that a second R train also struck the bike and both trains had to brake in an emergency. Police said the stunt caused damage to the train and created risk of injury or death to straphangers but no injuries were reported.
"This was an attack on all of New York City that took place in the transit system and 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," MTA spokesperson Tim Minton said in a statement Tuesday.
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Police on Friday released images of the people they wanted for questioning and asked anyone with information to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477).