'Thanks Zach!': New York has a new hero, he helped apprehend a Brooklyn shooter

On Wednesday, April 13, New York City honored a new hero, a 21-year-old Syrian who moved to the United States five years ago, speaks five languages ​​and lives in Jersey City, reports The New York Times.

Security camera specialist Zack Tahan said he was working on a hardware upgrade at a store near St. Marks Place and First Avenue in Manhattan's East Village when, through one of the security cameras, he saw Frank R. Brooklyn subway shooting.

At an impromptu press conference in front of a crowd of reporters and bystanders, Tahan recalled: “I thought, oh my God, this is the guy, we need to catch him. He was walking down the street, next to me I saw a police car and I said to myself: yo, this is the same guy!”

Tahan ran outside following the suspect and warning those around him to keep their distance.

“People thought I was crazy or doing drugs. But it's not. I am fasting,” he said, referring to fasting during the Muslim month of Ramadan.

Police said they received word that James was at a McDonald's less than two blocks from where Tahan spotted him. Two law enforcement sources said that James called the hotline himself.

Police have not yet confirmed whether Tahan's actions led to James's arrest. But the guy's upbeat demeanor and charismatic energy have made him a social media sensation. The #Thankyouzack hashtag is now trending and people are using it to share clips and videos from his press conference.

On the subject: Police arrest Frank James in Brooklyn subway shooting suspect

Others also claim to be the one who brought the police to James.

And no wonder, because there is a reward of $ 50 for this.

In an interview, Francisco Puebla, manager of the Saifee hardware and gardening store on First Avenue at Seventh Street, where Tahan worked, tried to pull the blanket over himself.

“He's all over social media,” Puebla, 46, said. “But I’m the one who took action.”

He said he saw a large man with a backpack walking slowly down First Avenue. But panic seized him, and fear prevented him from calling the police, because Puebla did not want to make a mistake.

"I don't want to give anyone trouble," the "witness" remarked.

But when the police car stopped at a red light on the corner, Puebla walked up to her, waved his hand and said: “Officer, I may be wrong, but the guy who shot at the subway is right in the middle of this block.”

A moment later, several police cars drove up to James and arrested him.

New York-based portrait artist Lee Vasu also allegedly alerted police to the shooter. Vasu told Artnet that after lunch at the Mogador Café on St. Mark's Place near First Avenue with his mother, wife and 8-month-old daughter, the artist spotted a suspect walking down the street. According to him, he approached a police car parked on First Avenue to point out the whereabouts of James. And after a few seconds, police cars began to arrive from all directions.