A 45-year-old man was killed on a subway train in the Bronx Friday morning, police said.

The man was riding a southbound D train just before 5 a.m. when three other passengers boarded at the Fordham Road stop in Fordham Heights, NYPD Chief of Transit Michael Kemper said at a news briefing. 

What You Need To Know

  • A 45-year-old man was killed during a fight on a subway train in the Bronx Friday morning, police said

  • Police said the man sustained an injury to the torso "consistent with either a gunshot wound or a puncture wound from a sharp object." The city's medical examiner will determine how he died

  • The NYPD is searching for three suspects in connection with the incident

One of the three passengers sat down next to the victim and the two exchanged words, leading to a physical fight between all four passengers, Kemper said.

At some point during the fight, the victim sustained an injury to the torso "consistent with either a gunshot wound or a puncture wound from a sharp object," he said.

Emergency responders took the man to St. Barnabas Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, the NYPD said. His name wasn't immediately released.

The three passengers police are now considering suspects fled the scene at the 182nd Street-183rd Street station, Kemper said. No arrests have been made.

Police on Friday initially said the victim was shot in the torso, but later said he suffered a puncture wound. Kemper said the city's medical examiner will determine the man's cause of death.

"Right now it’s to be determined if they knew each other, but watching the video and talking to witnesses, this looks like it was an isolated, random occurrence,” he said. “It looks like our victim was by himself.”

The incident marked the second time in as many weeks a person was killed in the subway system in the Bronx. Last week, a 35-year-old man was killed and five others were hurt in a shooting at the Mount Eden Avenue 4 train station, police said.

Authorities said two groups of teenagers were behind that outburst of gunfire. A 16-year-old boy was arrested on charges including murder and attempted murder after that shooting, the NYPD said.

At Friday's briefing, MTA Chairman and CEO Janno Lieber said the agency was focused on "making sure that the subways are safe from any kind of weapons."

“Listen, anytime there is an event like this, New Yorkers are alarmed,” Lieber said. “The subway is a place that everybody in New York depends on. It’s gotta be safe, it’s gotta feel safe, even if you’re traveling in the middle of the night, like this when this incident occurred."