Subway shooting victim ID’d as 26-year-old from the Bronx

The straphanger gunned down on a subway platform over the weekend has been identified as a 26-year-old from the Bronx.

Darell Rodriguez was shot in the chest at around 12:20 p.m. Saturday at the 53rd Street/7th Avenue subway station in Midtown Manhattan by an unidentified stranger who then fled the scene, the NYPD said.

Rodriguez is believed to have been heading home from work as a security guard at the front desk of a Manhattan building, according to sources.

A man dressed in red, identified as one of the alleged gunmen, flees the scene. Obtained by NY Post

He was waiting for a northbound E train to his home in University Heights in the Bronx when his killer approached him, displayed his gun, and shot him once, police sources told The Post.

The pair had a dispute on the platform, although details remain unclear, NYPD Deputy Chief Keith Shine said on Sunday.

The killer then left the station traveling northbound on 7th Ave., and is still on the loose, according to police.

He was last seen wearing a red tracksuit, a black vest and face mask, and carrying a backpack.

It is not clear whether the killer knew his victim, but police emphasized the shooting was targeted.

Police rush to help the victim. Sofia Poznansky/NY Post
Police investigate after a person was shot in a Midtown subway station on the 7th Avenue platform at 53rd Street in New York, Saturday, Oct. 17, 2026. Michael McWeeney/NY Post

Rodriguez was transported to Bellevue Hospital where he was pronounced dead on arrival just after 1:00 p.m., police said.

Rodriguez’s shooting marks the seventh murder in the New York City transit system this year and the fourth gun death, up from two over the same period in 2025, according to NYPD statistics.

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