NYC Jewish community terror threat averted by suspects’ arrest at Penn Station

A “developing threat” to New York City’s Jewish community was averted early Saturday by the arrests of two armed men at Penn Station early Saturday, NYPD Commissioner Keechant Sewell said in a statement.

The threat was uncovered Friday by state and federal law enforcement, Sewell said.

Authorities “moved swiftly to gather information, identify those behind it, and operationally neutralize their ability to do harm,” Sewell’s statement said.

“By early Saturday, the NYPD’s exhaustive intelligence-gathering led to the arrest by sharp-eyed MTA police officers of two individuals entering Penn Station, in Manhattan, and the seizures of a large hunting knife, an illegal Glock 17 firearm and 30-round magazine, and several other items,” the statement said.

What the men intended to do with their weapons was not made clear in the statement.

On Friday, authorities investigating the threat sought a 22-year-old man who is a diagnosed schizophrenic and recently told his family he wanted to travel to New York City to buy a firearm, a police source said.

The man was considered armed and dangerous, said the source. But it was unclear Saturday if he was one of the two men arrested at Penn Station.

Police commanders are “strategically deploying assets at sensitive locations throughout New York City,” Sewell said.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.