Police are asking for the public's help identifying a woman who allegedly pushed a bystander into an oncoming subway train at the Times Square subway station on Monday morning.
The 42-year-old victim was waiting on the northbound 1, 2, 3 train tracks at approximately 8:15 a.m. when she was allegedly pushed into the oncoming 1 train by an unprovoked stranger.
The victim hit her face into the side of the incoming train but did not fall onto the tracks in front of the train, which could have been fatal.
"It looked malicious," witness Alejandro DeJesus told ABC7. "That's scary. That could happen to anybody when you least expect it."
According to police, "the victim, after being struck by the train, fell back onto the platform, and sustained serious physical injuries to her face and legs." The woman was transported to a local hospital by ambulance and is in stable condition.
The unprovoked suspect fled the scene in an unknown direction, according to the NYPD. Surveillance footage captured at the scene showed a woman wearing a black long sleeve shirt and a colorful headscarf. She was also wearing black shorts, black boots, and carrying a black bag.
The police are asking anyone with any information to call the NYPD Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also anonymously submit tips at the Crime Stoppers website: https://crimestoppers.nypdonline.org/.
Last month, Newsweek reported about a woman who was randomly kicked down an escalator at the Atlantic Ave-Barclays Center Subway Station in Brooklyn, New York.
A video posted by the New York Police Department showed an unidentified man walk past a woman on the escalator. He then turned around to look at the woman before forcibly kicking her in the chest and exiting the escalator. The video showed the woman fall backward due to the sheer force of the kick.
The NYPD told Newsweek that the man and woman got into a verbal exchange before the man kicked her in the chest. The police said it was a "verbal exchange that escalated when the unidentified male kicked the victim in her chest, which caused her to fall several feet down the escalator."
According to police, the 32-year-old victim "suffered cuts and bruises to her back, arms, legs, right knee and right thigh and trauma to her left ankle," from the physical assault. But authorities told Newsweek the woman refused medical assistance on the scene.
On September 18, about nine days after the assault, the NYPD identified the suspect and arrested him in his Brooklyn home. The suspect, 32-year-old Bradley Hill, was charged with assault and attempted assault.
Due to the increase in subway crime, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) installed security cameras in every New York City subway station last month.
"If you are a criminal who preys on those who use our system, you will have your image captured and be put on the express track to justice," MTA Chief Safety Officer Pat Warren said in a statement. "The image will be delivered to the police, and the police will use it to find you. The NYPD has been aggressively investigating every crime in the subway, which is why crime is way down this year."
About the writer
Samantha Berlin is a Newsweek reporter based in New York. Her focus is reporting on trends and human-interest stories. Samantha ... Read more
