Don Samuels rides MARTA several times a week and has been using the trains since the 1990s.
He said he’s never had a bad experience, but he admitted Friday that he was concerned to learn of a shooting that took place at a downtown Atlanta station less than 24 hours earlier.
“You don’t know who is in these stations and you have to be always vigilant,” he said before boarding a train at the Georgia World Congress Center/CNN Center station. “It’s a shame you have things like this going on in a public area.”
On Thursday afternoon, a 23-year-old man was shot to death aboard an eastbound train and found at the station on Centennial Olympic Park Drive, officials confirmed. Jah-Malik Marcano had been shot while the train was in transit from the Hamilton E. Holmes station, authorities told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Responding officers tried to save Marcano, but he was pronounced dead at the scene.
While police did not say if they know what led to the shooting, officers have a photo of the suspect and are searching for him on their daily patrols. The photo was not released to the public, but MARTA police spokesperson Sgt. Deneya Littles said that Georgia World Congress Center police, as well as Atlanta police and other neighboring agencies, received a lookout bulletin for the suspect.
Littles confirmed there were no changes to MARTA’s operations Friday, and around noon there was no police presence at the GWCC/CNN Center station station as only a handful of passengers passed through.
The station typically sees heavier traffic during events and conventions at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, State Farm Arena and the World Congress Center, MARTA spokesperson Stephany Fisher said.
Samuels and another passenger at the GWCC/CNN station Friday weren’t aware of Thursday’s shooting but said they already take extra note of their surroundings while using MARTA. David Bland said he rides about once a week.
“I’m shocked, but not shocked at the same time,” Bland said, adding that he often wears only one earbud when he rides the train.
“I do watch, I try not to go to sleep,” he said. “I keep my eyes open.”
Credit: Jozsef Papp
Credit: Jozsef Papp
Samuels uses MARTA more often — at least three times a week to his job in Midtown. He called the shooting “concerning,” but reiterated that he feels safe riding MARTA. However, he makes sure to stay vigilant.
“There (are) sometimes you have to be aware. Everyone is not in their right mind, so you have to be aware of what’s coming and who is coming because you are in public,” he said.
He tries not to be on his phone and stays in areas where people are present so that he is not isolated, though he said he’s noticed a lack of police presence at MARTA stations recently.
“It seems we have less and less security and police in the area,” he said.
While Littles confirmed that security was not increased, she said the transportation agency has “over 250 officers and protective specialists patrolling the system, as well as employees in our police communications center monitoring the CCTV cameras.”
Thursday’s shooting was the only one reported this year at the GWCC/CNN Center station, Littles added.
In the past five years, there have been 11 homicides recorded on MARTA property, according to agency data. It was not clear where those killings took place or if they were a result of shootings or other fatal means, but five of them happened in 2023. None were reported in 2018 or 2019.
While shootings sometimes take place near MARTA stations, one of the more recent to unfold on MARTA property was on Thanksgiving Day.
Two men were fighting aboard a northbound train at the West End station on Lee Street in southwest Atlanta when the tension escalated to gunfire. One of them was taken to a hospital, and both were charged and permanently banned from the transit system.
Littles affirmed Samuels’ advice to always be alert to what is happening around you.
“Be aware of your surroundings and don’t be afraid to contact MPD ... when you notice suspicious or criminal activity,” she said. “Safety on the system is a team effort that requires assistance from our patrons. If we don’t know, we cannot help.”
Credit: Jozsef Papp / jozsef.papp-chang@ajc.com
Credit: Jozsef Papp / jozsef.papp-chang@ajc.com
Riders who need to get in touch with MARTA police can call 404-848-4911. MARTA’s “See & Say” app can also be used to submit anonymous reports with photos and short videos. Riders can chat directly with a member of the police communications center through the app. Additionally, the blue-and-white customer assistance phones located at the station can be used to report suspicious activity.
However, at least three phones at the station did not work Friday, one of which was broken with wires coming out of one end.
