An early morning FBI raid on a Philadelphia Airbnb that was rented by Brooklyn subway gunman Frank James left residents shaken and shaken — and federal authorities empty-handed.
“All building alarms went off. Then I heard the explosions and the tear gas started,” Ayana McKay, who lives in the Upper North Philly townhouse where James has locked himself in until this week, told The Post on Wednesday.
“[FBI agents] shouted upstairs for me to come out, and when I opened the door, SWAT pointed their guns at me.
“They asked me if I was a hostage. They kept asking me if I had anyone in the apartment.
James, 62, was arrested near an East Village McDonald’s on Wednesday afternoon after dropping a penny on himself, police say – but was still the subject of a manhunt in several States around 4:30 a.m. when the Philadelphia raid broke out.
“I didn’t go out,” said neighbor Bruce Allen, 45. “Once I saw the guns drawn, I wasn’t taking any chances. They might be looking for me, I don’t know.
Another neighbour, Joseph Gillooly, 46, said surrounding streets were blocked off and cops “fired tear gas into the building three times.
“You never know who lives around you,” Gillooly said. “He didn’t need to go to New York. He could have gone to Broad and Allegheny. He could have opened fire on the block.
The FBI said cops recovered two empty magazines and ammunition, but not James.
Locals said they knew little about the fugitive – but recognized him at least once.
“When the cops showed me the photo, I knew it was him,” Airbnb tenant McKay said. “The big ass head he had in the picture was the big ass head I saw.”
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