A straphanger claimed to have a gun over the intercom on a West Harlem subway train, sending riders into a mass panic, a witness and transit officials said Tuesday.
“I have a f–king gun! I have a f–king gun!” someone shouted in an aggressive tone around 9:30 p.m. Saturday, according to rider Alexandria Neason, who was on the southbound 1 train.
Neason said the train was pulling into the West 125th Street station when the other passengers became suddenly alert.
“That’s when I took my headphones and caught the end,” Neason told The Post. “The voice seemed to be coming from the intercom system much louder than usual, and it was very clear.”
She said she feared for her life and glanced around at the other riders to see if anyone had a weapon.
“[I was thinking] Are the doors going to be stuck with whoever this person is? It was really scary,” she said.
When the subway car’s doors opened, Neason said she and around 100 people from the train exited onto the platform.
“There was a weird moment of hesitation where people were looking for a conductor,” Neason said.
But chaos ensued when a man came running down the platform warning the riders of a person with a gun, she said.
“When I saw him running, my heart dropped, and I was running before I even realized it,” said Neason, who joined other dozens of straphangers as they fled the station.
Neason said some ducked into a nearby grocery station and a crying woman flagged down a nearby officer.
“I had my phone in my hand and was trying to call my parents,” Neason said.
MTA officials said authorities responded to the incident but didn’t find a gun or a suspect.
“The conductor after the police left went car-to-car and could not find any evidence that any of the conductor cabs on the train had been entered, disturbed or in any way vandalized,” MTA spokesman Tim Minton said.
Officials said it was determined that someone likely hijacked the PA system, though it’s unclear how that occurred. Similar incidents have involved straphangers gaining access to the conductor’s mic.
Police said they’re investigating the incident and reviewing surveillance footage.
“We’re still looking into how exactly that person was able to project their voice over the loudspeaker system,” NYPD Transit Chief Ed Delatorre said.
But Neason questioned why transit officials haven’t done more to prevent these incidents if they’re reoccurring.
“It’s one thing to have kids goofing off, and another to have someone say something like this in the context of all the mass shootings,” Neason said.