Tensions have been rising in the subway system in recent weeks, with commuters observing and filming what they deem to be the overly aggressive policing of black and Hispanic riders. Some New Yorkers have jumped turnstiles in protest of the arrests of young black men and the handcuffing of a woman selling churros.

In a discrimination lawsuit brought against the Police Department, several officers recently gave sworn statements saying that a commander helping to oversee much of the system in Brooklyn urged officers to target black and Hispanic commuters for low-level offenses.

The department has said its enforcement of fare evasion is not aimed at black and Hispanic people.

[Read more: “I got tired of hunting black and Hispanic people.”]

The details

The commander in question, Constantin Tsachas, was in charge of more than 100 officers between 2011 and 2015. The district he commanded spanned much of south Brooklyn, including the diverse neighborhoods of Sunset Park, Flatbush and Brighton Beach.