Security camera failure during NYC subway attack to be investigated

Police acknowledge that cameras in three stations were not working when gunman set off smoke device and shot 10 people

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  Police circulated images of Frank R James, 62, after the mass shooting in Brooklyn, New York. EPA

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  Emergency crews at the entrance to the 36th Street subway station in Brooklyn, after the rush-hour shooting on Tuesday. AP

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  Police and fire officials at the scene in New York. EPA

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  Several people were shot, with wounded commuters left bleeding on the platform. EPA

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  At least 13 people were injured. AP

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  Officers with dogs trained to sniff out explosives were among the police at the scene. AP

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  Sniffer dogs at the station. AP

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  Police and fire crews at the scene. EPA

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  The fire department said 13 people were injured, while police said at least five had been shot. AFP

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  Heavily armed police at the cordoned-off station. Getty

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  Onlookers stand behind the cordon. Getty

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  Rush-hour commuters were caught up in the incident. AFP

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  Bomb disposal experts arrive at the station. EPA

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  Emergency services vehicles outside the scene of the shooting. AP

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  Police and rescue workers crowd the street outside the station after the shooting. AFP

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  New York commuters wait for a subway train after the shooting. Reuters

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  A police officer and dog check a subway station in Manhattan after the Brooklyn incident. Reuters

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  Metropolitan Transportation Authority workers carry out checks in Manhattan. Reuters

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  Stations throughout the network were on alert. Reuters

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  Police and security officers on patrol at Manhattan's 42nd Street station. Reuters

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  Heavily armed police at the scene of the shooting in Brooklyn's Sunset Park neighbourhood. AFP

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  Emergency workers at the scene of the shooting. EPA

The failure of security cameras in the New York subway station where a gunman opened fire this month is now the subject of an investigation, acting Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) Inspector General Elizabeth Keating announced on Monday.

“As the horrific mass shooting two weeks ago in Sunset Park has raised questions about the MTA camera system, the Office of the Inspector General has initiated an inquiry into why the cameras were not transmitting on April 12 and a review of the maintenance and repair programme for the critical equipment,” Ms Keating said in a statement.

Police acknowledged that security cameras in three stations were not working on the morning of April 12, including in the Brooklyn station where the gunman set off a smoke device and shot 10 people.

The MTA has about 10,000 cameras at its 472 subway stations and other cameras in nearby stations helped police track gunman Frank James’s movements before and after the shooting.

Mr James also left behind a bag containing weapons, smoke grenades and the key to a U-Haul vehicle he had driven. The vehicle was found parked near a station where authorities believe Mr James entered the subway dressed in construction clothing.

He was apprehended the following day in New York and charged with a federal terrorism offence.

All of the shooting victims are expected to survive.