You are reading

Man Dead After Jumping Turnstile at Forest Hills Subway Station

Forest Hills-71st Avenue subway station (Wikipedia)

Forest Hills-71st Avenue subway station (Wikipedia)

Jan. 3, 2022 By Michael Dorgan

A man is dead after he leaped over a subway turnstile in Forest Hills early Sunday morning and snapped his neck upon landing.

Christopher De La Cruz, 28, went headfirst into the ground inside the Forest Hills-71st Avenue train station after attempting to jump a turnstile to evade the fare, police said.

When police arrived on the scene at around 6:45 a.m., De La Cruz was on the ground unconscious and unresponsive. EMS arrived and pronounced him dead at the station, cops said.

Dramatic video footage released by the New York Post captures De La Cruz making several failed attempts to get over the turnstile.

The video shows De La Cruz, who was from 88th Street in East Elmhurst, trying to crash through a turnstile in his first attempt but is blocked by the barrier.

De La Cruz, wearing a black hoody and a backpack, then stumbles backward before attempting to hop over a different turnstile. He makes several goes at jumping the barrier before eventually hoisting himself up with his hands against the barricades.

He then loses his balance sending him over the turnstile and landing headfirst on the concrete.

email the author: news@queenspost.com

5 Comments

Click for Comments 
COCED

RIP. You gotta give it to him, he was persistent. Not very athletic though.
Expect law suit because of inaccessability!

2
2
Reply
Nathan0205

Absolutely gutted. Concluding his bender in such a horrifying fashion is no way for any man to go. Wish he jumped a tad higher.

1
2
Reply
Sara Ross

Not crying for him. I know that entrance to the station and I have written numerous times to the MTA that at that entrance there needs to be tall turnstiles because there is no booth and it’s easy to jump over the turnstiles and avoid paying the fare. I’ve also written to them that at the 67th Ave station on the 67th Drive side, the emergency door should be locked because every day I see the school kids going through it and saw an old lady go through it the other day. She didn’t speak english (what a shock) and when I yelled at her (I pay for an unlimited card), she looked at me and held up her metro card. I guess she thought she could get back from wherever she was going the same way she got into this station. Same problem exists with the turnstiles at the S/B Rector Street station (back of the train). Just thought I’d mention it.

7
3
Reply
Captain Obvious

This would have been avoided if fare evasion was never decriminalized. How long before family files lawsuit against the city?

13
2
Reply

Leave a Comment
Reply to this Comment

All comments are subject to moderation before being posted.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Recent News

Southeast Queens leaders endorse Mark Levine for NYC comptroller

Apr. 17, 2025 By Athena Dawson

Cook cited Levine’s experience and problem-solving skills as a reason for her vote of confidence. “Mark is the clear choice to be our City’s next comptroller, and I am proud to back him today and every day. He has the experience and creative problem-solving skills to tackle some of our city’s most pressing issues while protecting New Yorkers from the dangers of Trump and the federal government,”  she shared in a statement. 

Op-ed: The power of representation in healthcare

Apr. 17, 2025 By Dr. Ifeanyi Oguagha

As physicians of color at Joseph P. Addabbo Family Health Center (JPAFHC), we regularly witness how representation in healthcare can save lives. Our patients – who, like us, are predominantly people of color – walk through our doors not only with medical concerns but also often carrying the weight of generations of inequities that have shaped their health outcomes.