Manhunt in New York after 'horrific' shootings of homeless people

Video footage shows gunman firing at one of the men as he slept in the early hours

A homeless person sleeping in Grand Central Terminal, in Midtown Manhattan, New York. A gunman killed one homeless man and wounded a second in Lower Manhattan, early on Saturday, March 12. Getty Images / AFP

A homeless person sits with their belongings on a New York pavement. Saturdays attacks took place between 4.30am and 6am, while the victims were asleep. Reuters

A homeless man with a sign asking for help, near Macy’s department store entrance in Midtown Manhattan. New York mayor Eric Adams described Saturday's shootings as 'senseless'. Reuters

A homeless person sleeps next to a shopping trolley of belongings in a New York subway station. AP

A man sleeping on a new York subway train. AP

In February, New York mayor Eric Adams announced a plan to try to stop homeless people from sleeping on trains or living in stations. AP

His proposal drew sharp criticism from some non-governmental organisations. AP

"People only stay in the subway because they have no better place to go," said the Coalition for the Homeless. Getty Images / AFP

Mayor Eric Adams has also added police and homeless outreach teams to the city's subways. Getty Images / AFP

Many homeless people sleep in the city's vast subway system and trains on cold nights. Getty Images / AFP

A homeless man in Queens, New York, during a rent debt protest. Following Saturday's attacks police urged New York's thousands of homeless people to contact city agencies for help with accommodation. AFP

Police in New York have appealed for help to identify a man who shot at least two homeless people, killing one as the victim slept on the street.

The attacker first shot a man, 38, in the US city's Lower Manhattan area early on Saturday, wounding him, investigators said.

Then shortly before 5pm, another man was found dead in a sleeping bag with gunshot wounds in his head and neck.

"The cases are clear and horrific," said Mayor Eric Adams, a former police officer, who urged witnesses to come forward.

Video surveillance footage captured that attack, showing the shooter firing at the second man as he slept at about 6am, shortly after the first incident.

On Sunday night, local media reported an attack on a third man, who also appeared to be homeless. He was found dead at around 7pm local time with a "possible gunshot wound," NBC New York reported, citing police.

Mr Adams described the shootings as senseless attacks on people "sleeping on the streets — not committing a crime, but sleeping on the streets."

He and the police urged New York's thousands of homeless people to contact city agencies that can help them find sleeping accommodation.

Homeless people moved out of subways

New York's homeless population has grown in recent years. Mr Adams announced a plan only weeks after taking office in January to move them out of the city's vast system of subway tunnels, where many sleep on cold nights.

His proposal drew sharp criticism from some non-governmental organisations.

"People only stay in the subway because they have no better place to go," said the Coalition for the Homeless.

The appeal comes after a stabbing at New York's Museum of Modern Art on Saturday, when a man leapt over a reception desk and stabbed two employees as they tried to flee.

Scenes from New York museum stabbing — in pictures