Zack Tahhan said he couldn’t sleep Tuesday night knowing a suspect was still at large after a mass shooting inside a Brooklyn subway car left dozens injured.
He could sleep better now after helping capture the suspect on Wednesday.
Tahhan, a 21-year-old security camera installer in Manhattan who is from Syriawas credited with capturing Frank R. James, a 62-year-old man suspected of dropping two smoke bombs into a subway car before opening fire with a gun and beating 10 people while en route from the Tuesday morning.
James, who was allegedly wearing a gas mask and construction vest, fled the scene after the attack near Sunset Park and remained missing throughout Wednesday. That is, down to an eagle-eyed sighting of Tahhan.
“My name is Zack,” Tahhan said in video captured by witness Samantha Zirkin recounting his deeds. “I was working inside the store, security cameras inside, and I see the camera guy and I’m like, ‘Oh shit, that guy! Let me call the police. So I call them and we catch him!
Tahhan was referring to James, whom he spotted walking near St. Mark’s Square in the East Village. Tahhan immediately sprang into action, shouting at passers-by to keep their distance from the suspected shooter after James put a bag down in the street.
“I said, ‘Guys, please stay away from him, this guy is going to do something,'” Tahhan recalled speaking to the media. “People think I’m crazy, no choice but to believe me. I say, ‘Guys, trust me, he’s the guy!’
Tahhan said he called the police, who then arrested James.
“Thank you for your bravery today, Zack,” said New York Attorney General Letitia James. said in a tweet. “All of New York is grateful.”
New York Police Department officers then escorted Tahhan to a police station to give a witness statement, video captured by journalist Gothamist Jake Offenhartz shows.
As the car pulled away, Tahhan waved through the window to the cheers of a celebrating crowd.
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