A freelance photographer working for the New York Post on an unrelated assignment happened to be standing on the 49th Street station platform when 58-year-old Queens resident Ki Suk Han was suddenly pushed onto the tracks by an as-yet-unidentified assailant.

The photographer, R. Umar Abbasi, snapped at least two photos of Han before he was run over by the downtown Q train. The married father-of-one sustained critical injuries and was later pronounced dead at Roosevelt Hospital.

One of the haunting photos Abbasi took graces the front page of the Post this morning, incurring the ire of readers who want to know why no help was extended to the injured Han in lieu of capturing the moment for posterity.

Abbasi claims that he was using his camera's flash to warn the train's conductor, possibly suggesting that the photos were incidental. The Post further defends Abbasi, saying he wasn't strong enough to lift Han off the tracks.

However, the question of whether it was proper for the Post to splash such a harrowing shot of a man about to die on its cover remains for many.

"Sickening rubber-necking front page from the New York Post," tweeted Guardian sports editor Ian Prior. "Imagine how this man's family feels."

"The @nypost and the employee who made the call to put the man about to die from a train on its cover are pieces of trash," adds Howard Stern producer Lee Gerowitz. "Despicable."

No comment from the Post on the flood of angry remarks, but, then again, one isn't likely forthcoming considering that flipping the cover over for relief reveals an article titled "Belcher spent night with a gal pal before killing."

[image via @nytjim]