Search continues for suspect following fatal shooting on LIRR train
RONKONKOMA, N.Y. -- A suspect is still on the run following a fatal shooting on a Long Island Rail Road train about to pull out of the Ronkonkoma station early Wednesday morning.
As CBS2's Jenna DeAngelis reported, police believe the gunman was traveling with the man he shot.
The train sat at the station through the morning commute, shutting down a track, with police investigating what led up to the shooting death of 20-year-old Yusef Staine of West Babylon.
"Two people involved, the shooter and the victim, appeared to have been traveling together and they appeared to have known each other," Suffolk County Police Det. Lt. Kevin Beyrer said.
The shooting happened at around 1:45 a.m. on the train, which was set to leave minutes later for Penn Station.
All morning, commuters were warned of possible delays and arrived at the station to a significant presence of Suffolk County and MTA police.
One person tweeted a photo showing what looks like a sheet blocking off the entrance to the train.
Wow get to the Long Island Rail Road @ Ronkonkoma and there is a dead person on the train that is in the station. Not sure of the details on what happened yet. I have a closer picture and you can see blood all over the floor. Not posting that as I'm not sure of the rules here. pic.twitter.com/vlNMsE7Jlo
— Jason (@jkstang78) February 16, 2022
Police said someone called 911 from the train station to report the shooting, which appears to be an isolated incident.
"I'd like to stress that this is not a random event. No other passengers were in danger. There were only two or three other passengers on the train at the time," Beyrer said.
Police said the suspect ran off after the incident. Staine was pronounced dead at the scene.
His heartbroken mother didn't want to speak on camera, but said, "He was killed and we need the person who did it to come forward."
The scene was cleared Wednesday afternoon and trains operated as normal. Police said no one else was injured in the incident.
The relationship between the suspect and Staine was not immediately clear. Police have not released a description of the person they are looking for.