Who is Andrew Abdullah? New York subway shooting suspect charged with second-degree murder

New York subway shooting suspect Andrew Abdullah, who caused the death of a 48-year-old Daniel Enriquez, was arrested while in the process of turning himself in.

Abdullah is being represented by The Legal Aid Society and faces murder and weapons possession charges. Unsettled by the nature of his arrest, Legal Aid was quick to release a statement:

"Before Andrew Abdullah could voluntarily surrender himself to the local precinct, he was needlessly ambushed out front by our Manhattan Trial Office by law enforcement, denied of his opportunity to first consult with counsel. Since last night, we have been actively speaking with the New York Police Department and the New York County District Attorney’s Office to negotiate his surrender, and what transpired today was completely inappropriate and unwarranted given those conversations."

Image for representational purposes (Image via Getty)

The statement further mentioned that Abdullah is presumed innocent and entitled to counsel and a robust defense and extended a word of caution to the New Yorkers from making quick judgments about him.

"We are just beginning our investigation and reviewing the evidence. Mr. Abdullah deserves vigorous representation from his defense counsel and that is what The Legal Aid Society will provide."

Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday evening, Chief of Detectives James Essig maintained that they do not know the motive behind the killing and it remains "a big mystery."

Abdullah's surrender and arrest in New York

The 25-year-old wanted in connection with the New York subway shooting had all plans to surrender.

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As per sources, Bishop Lamor Whitehead and his attorneys were negotiating his surrender at a Chinatown stationhouse. However, things did not go as planned as soon after he was arrested by the cops.

As per reports, Whitehead, a New York clergyman, had arranged Abdullah's surrender. He also said that he contacted the Mayor Adams office to try and negotiate a peaceful surrender before police arrested Abdullah.

Whitehead was quoted as saying in a report by the NY Post:

"This man is innocent. His family has untold paperwork showing that he has mental health issues. I pray that the courts do the right thing with this young man. But as per him wanting to turn himself in, I don’t believe he’s a villain."

He committed the crime, but will he do the time?

The police at a press briefing held on Tuesday informed them that Abdullah faces second-degree murder and second-degree criminal possession of a weapon charge.

NYPD Chief of Detectives Essig said that Abdullah was “pacing back and forth inside the train car muttering to himself” before firing the gun.

Essig stated that the only distinguishable words were, 'no phones.' Essig was quoted as saying in a report by the NY Post:

“The male suddenly and without any prior interactions or provocation walked up to our victim… and shot him one time in the chest."

As per reports, after he fled the scene, Abdullah ditched his 9-millimeter handgun with a homeless man near the station.

Sources also said that Abdullah reportedly had priors. This includes time in 2018 when pleaded guilty to attempted possession of a weapon. He’s was out on bail after he was hit with a gun charge in 2020. In 2021, he was charged with assault and endangering the welfare of a child, as per a report by The New York Times.

Given the nature of the crime and the unrest it has caused among the people, only time will tell the extent of his sentencing.