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Who were Zemfira Mukhtarov and Ebba Morina? What we know about Brooklyn J train subway surfing victims
Zemfira Mukhtarov and Ebba Morina,12 and 13, were killed while subway surfing on a Brooklyn J train. They were with a group of teens before the deadly fall.
Two young girls who died while subway surfing in Brooklyn early Saturday have been identified. Police said the girls were with about 15 other teens who had been running around inside the train before the tragedy.
Officers questioned three teenage boys at the station, two of whom were taken away for further questioning.
Who were Zemfira Mukhtarov and Ebba Morina ?
Police said 12-year-old Zemfira Mukhtarov of Brooklyn and 13-year-old Ebba Morina of Manhattan were found on top of a Brooklyn-bound J train at the Marcy Avenue-Broadway station around 3:10 a.m. Both were pronounced dead at the scene.
Zemfira’s father, Ruslan Mukhtarov, expressed his heartbreak in a GoFundMe post created to help cover funeral costs. “With heavy hearts, we are reaching out for support after the tragic loss of my beloved daughter, Zemfira, who passed away in a devastating accident at a subway station,” he wrote.
“She was 12 and she had to have her [13th birthday] in just 2 weeks, full of life, and taken from us far too soon in a heartbreaking incident that we believe was a subway surfing accident,” he added. “No parent should ever have to face the pain of losing a child, and no child should lose their life in such a tragic way. We are struggling to process this immense grief, and we are turning to our community for help to give Zemfira the respectful and loving farewell she deserves.”
Subway surfing trend
Subway surfing, a social media-driven trend, has been blamed for multiple deaths in recent years. Police said five people have died from the act so far this year, following six deaths in 2024 and five in 2023.
“It’s heartbreaking that two young girls are gone because they somehow thought riding outside a subway train was an acceptable game,” NYC Transit President Demetrius Crichlow said in a statement. “Parents, teachers, and friends need to be clear with loved ones: getting on top of a subway car isn’t ‘surfing’— it’s suicide. I’m thinking of both the grieving families, and transit workers who discovered these children, all of whom have been horribly shaken by this tragedy.”
Also read: NYC Hudson Yards bomb threat update: Times Square subway trains canceled; NYPD on scene
Previous subway surfing fatalities
Authorities said the last fatal subway surfing case involved 15-year-old Bronx teen Carlos Oliver, who fell from a 7 train on July 4. Earlier this year, 12-year-old Gustavo Guaman-Quizhpilema from Queens died days after being critically injured while surfing on a 7 train in March.
The MTA has continued its “Ride Inside, Stay Alive” campaign to discourage the act, while the NYPD began using drones in 2023 to catch offenders. Police said 229 people were stopped for riding outside trains in 2024, compared to 135 the previous year.
