Subway rider fights back after 'much bigger' passenger slaps him in face, sends his glasses flying



Alexander Rakitin told the New York Post he's been commuting from Brooklyn to Manhattan on the subway for almost three decades — but in the last couple of years he's noticed the danger factor increase.

“I think everyone who takes the subway feels scared and nervous,” Rakitin, a father who works in finance, told the Post. “There’s a degree of nervousness all the time. Scanning my surroundings, seeing irate, angry people. People just not following the rules, antisocial behavior, criminal behavior, and aggression.”

'Everybody that gets on the subway in the morning knows they're going down into a dangerous place. That's just the reality we live in.'

Rakitin experienced all of that dialed up several notches earlier this week in a dangerous encounter captured on cellphone video.

Just after 8:30 a.m. Monday, Rakitin was aboard the N train when another passenger became upset, WABC-TV reported.

The Post noted that Rakitin, 42, accidentally nudged the knee of 34-year-old Timothy Barbee.

"He's being aggressive that apparently I sat too close to him, even though I wasn't in an adjacent seat," Rakitin told the station. "It's just he felt that's his personal space, and he was being very aggressive. I told him to just chill out. Like, just chill. It's 8:30 in the morning. Just going to work. Nobody needs this. Just chill out. And he just escalated."

Video shows the pair jawing at each other with apparent expletives when Barbee tells Rakitin to "make me chill" and repeatedly orders him to "shut the f*** up." Rakitin tells Barbee that "you started it," and the pair stare each other down.

With that, Barbee tells Rakitin, “I ain’t got time to go to jail today" and to "stop staring at me" — and then slaps Rakitin in the face, causing Rakitin's glasses to fly off his head.

Rakitin told WABC that while he's had previous encounters on the subway, this was the first time it escalated into physical violence.

But Rakitin said he fought back.

"I got on top of him, and I just grabbed ahold of him," he told the station. "And I was thinking, like, 'Just don't let go because he's much bigger than me.' I don't know what's on his mind, so I was just holding him until the cops came."

Rakitin added to WABC that Barbee started calling out for help. What's more, Rakitin told the Post that Barbee — and other passengers — actually began telling Ratikin to let Barbee go.

“The only way I can explain it to myself is that the people that saw it start, how it started, they just ran away," Rakitin told the paper. "Most people just ran away into a different train car. And then the people that didn’t see it start only paid attention when I wrestled him to the ground.”

The Post said Barbee was arrested after the train pulled into the next stop; he was charged with third-degree assault. WABC said Rakitin wasn't seriously hurt.

Barbee declined to comment on the incident after his Tuesday arraignment, the Post reported.

"Everybody that gets on the subway in the morning knows they're going down into a dangerous place," Rakitin told WABC. "That's just the reality we live in."

You can view WABC's video report here about the incident. The Post's video shows the argument, the slap — and then Barbee being led off the train in handcuffs.

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Street preacher says Subway worker refused to serve him over his T-shirt condemning homosexuality with biblical reference



A street preacher said a Subway worker in Wisconsin recently refused to serve him over his T-shirt displaying a phrase condemning homosexuality as a sin.

Rich Penkoski told the Christian Post he was wearing a T-shirt displaying the phrase "Homo sex is sin: Romans 1" when an interaction took place — which was recorded on video — in the Waunakee restaurant. Penkoski was traveling with other pastors after preaching outside the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, the Post added. Waunakee is about an hour and 20 minutes west of Milwaukee.

'If the shoe were on the other foot, if somebody walked in and said, 'Oh, I'm gay' or whatever, and I said, 'Nope, I'm not serving you,' this would be all over the place, and I'd be fired, or I'd be getting sued.'

David Grisham, apparently also one of the street preachers, posted a Facebook message Tuesday with multiple photos saying, "This person working at Subway in Waunakee Village Mall refused to serve us because of our Christian T-shirts. Christophobic bigotry should not be tolerated. Please give Subway corporate a call." It isn't clear on what date the interaction occurred.

One of the photos Grisham posted shows four men outside a Subway wearing T-shirts displaying phrases such as, "Abortion is murder," "Homo sex is sin: Romans 1," and "Planned Parenthood murders children and rapes their mothers."

Grisham posted video of the interaction in the Subway, writing in the caption, "Subway Karen refuses to serve street preachers because of Christian T-shirts in Waukanee [sic] Wisconsin." The following is how the exchange went down:

"Are you refusing to service customers? She's refusing to serve us," one man says in the clip. "She just said she's refusing to serve us."

"What are you talking about?" another man asks.

"This girl right here said she's refusing to serve us," the first man replies.

"So we have to go somewhere else?" a third man wonders.

"I want her to say it again," the first man says.

"I am refusing you service," the Subway worker behind the counter replies.

As for her reasons for the refusal, she soon says it's a "personal matter."

The first man asks if it's "because of my T-shirt?"

She replies, "Yes."

"OK, [I'm] sure Subway Corporate will love to hear that," the first man replies.

The Christian Post reported that the Subway employee speaking in the video was referring to Penkoski's "Homo sex is sin: Romans 1" T-shirt.

"If the shoe were on the other foot, if somebody walked in and said, 'Oh, I'm gay' or whatever, and I said, 'Nope, I'm not serving you,' this would be all over the place, and I'd be fired, or I'd be getting sued," Penkoski told the Post.

Penkoski added to the Post, "But these LGBT people are so emboldened that they think just because they're either gay or gay allies, they can say and do whatever they want. So if they really want equality, then they should be OK with me suing them the same way they sue us."

Penkoski said he has spoken with his attorney about possible legal action against Subway for a civil rights violation, the Post added.

Grisham noted in a Facebook comment that his group "did NOT purposely try to antagonize anyone. We just went in for a sandwich. A local pastor was buying us dinner, and we had only been inside for less than a minute and hadn’t said a word to anyone. She just saw our shirts and blurted out profanity and said she wouldn’t serve us. REASONABLE people are reasonable when it comes to differences of opinion and are professional enough to just serve someone without letting their emotions go into elementary schoolyard mode and whine publicly."

Grisham noted in another comment that "if we had been homosexuals with rainbow shirts, and they refused us service, there would be riots in the streets."

But plenty of commenters on Grisham's Facebook posts about the incident pushed back hard. To wit:

  • "Learn the difference between Christianity and Christian nationalism," one commenter shot back. "[You] all are simply bigots, and that’s why she refused you service."
  • "I wouldn’t serve you, either," another commenter said. "You wear disgusting shirts like that to get a reaction out of people. Good job. You got your reaction."
  • "Subway will not take your side, nor will any reasonably minded person," another commenter declared before adding, "You are not a Christian in any way shape or form."
  • "Having these kinds of shirts on and calling them 'religious T-shirts' is a CRAZZYYY reach," another commenter wrote. "Speaks volumes to the values of your religious priorities, I guess. You're always welcome to have freedom of speech, not freedom of consequence. To everyone saying you should sue based on 'religious discrimination' has (1) never seen the shirts you guys were actually wearing or (2) is grossly misinformed as to how the legal system actually works. The prosecutors would laugh it out the courthouse in an hour."

The U.S. Supreme Court in 2018 sided with Masterpiece Cakeshop owner Jack Phillips after he refused to make a cake celebrating a same-sex wedding. But last October, the Colorado Supreme Court said it would take up a lawsuit from transgender plaintiff Autumn Scardina against Phillips after he refused to make a cake to celebrate Scardina's gender transition.

The Christian Post said Subway's corporate office did not respond to its request for comment by time of publication.

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Transgender attacker menaces man with shoe, then punches him in face on NYC subway platform, leaving victim bloody, cops say



A transgender male identifying as a female menaced a man with a shoe, then punched him in face on a New York City subway platform over the weekend, leaving the victim's forehead bloody, police said.

What are the details?

Police told WPIX-TV the incident occurred around 6:30 a.m. Saturday at Grand Central station in Manhattan. Officers and emergency medical services were recorded on video attending to the 39-year-old victim, who was seen holding a cloth to his forehead as blood dripped down his hand.

The victim was loaded into an ambulance and taken to NYU Langone in stable condition, the station said.

Police said the attacker fled the scene, no one was arrested, and it remains unclear what led to the attack, WPIX said.

The station said the attack left subway riders concerned about transit safety.

“It has been like people getting attacked by random people,” Ruben Morales, who has been riding the subway since he can remember, told WPIX.

Subway rider Chris J. added to the station that "it is New York, and you just gotta stay safe, no matter where you are. Just be vigilant of your surroundings."

WPIX, citing NYPD data, noted that subway crime is down more than 23% in March. Mayor Eric Adams previously attributed the drop in subway crime to the addition of 1,000 officers to keep watch, the station said.

Morales didn't seem convinced, telling WPIX that officials "are more worried people hopping the train instead of people getting attacked here. So, they all stay near the upstairs instead of coming down ... being around the people."

Transgender woman punches man on subway platform: NYPD youtu.be

How are observers reacting?

Nearly 1,000 comments have popped up under the WPIX story published on Yahoo News — and many of them are not happy:

  • "Crime in the subway is down 23%? Go tell those that have been punched, killed, and outright victimized by criminals," one commenter wrote.
  • "Transmania," another commenter declared. "From middle schools to subways."
  • "Probably called him 'he' and refused to use his preferred pronouns," another commenter quipped.
  • "Hate crime?" another commenter wondered with tongue firmly in cheek.
  • "When 2 + 2 = Wednesday, this is what you get," another commenter pointed out.

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'All glory to God': Former wrestler doesn't let thug get away with physically abusing female Subway employee



Gabriel Pitzulo walked into the Subway on East Hanna Avenue on Indianapolis’ south side for his usual lunch on March 22 — a sweet onion chicken teriyaki footlong, WRTV-TV reported.

But when he approached the counter, Pitzulo said he witnessed something much less appetizing — a male verbally and physically abusing a female Subway employee.

“I had walked in and he was visibly assaulting [the employee] ... throwing stuff. I believe I saw him spit at her,” Pitzulo later told WRTV. “And how I was raised, man, you don't do that stuff. It was kind of 'go time' from there.”

Surveillance video shows that as the male turned and walked away from the counter, Pitzulo grabbed him and quickly took him down to the store's floor.

"She didn't seem like she could defend herself ... and I was afraid that he was either leaving to get something to harm her ... she had said that he had threatened to kill her," Pitzulo added to WRTV.

Pitzulo — a former wrester and football player — was able to hold the male until police arrived, the station said.

“I did combat sports for quite a while, so I was completely controlling [him],” Pitzulo explained to WRTV. "He [was] trying to bite me, and I didn't want to punch him or anything. I didn't want to hurt him too bad. I just held him, man.”

Image source: WRTV-TV video screenshot

Daniel Saunders was arrested at the scene and is being charged with battery resulting in bodily injury, the station said, adding that his next hearing is scheduled for Thursday.

District manager Aara Khan told WRTV he's thankful Pitzulo stepped up: "It could’ve turned out very dangerous. Luckily he was here at the right time.”

Image source: WRTV-TV video screenshot

Khan added to the station that Pitzulo is "definitely a hero."

Pitzulo played down the accolade: “All glory to God, man. He's always protected me and put me in situations ... that I can handle. I don't feel like a hero, but I'm glad I did it.”

Oh, and WRTV said the Subway is offering Pitzulo a free sandwich any time he visits.

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Subway charges woman over $1,000 for sandwich. She finally gets refund nearly 2 months later — but her problems aren't over.



While an Ohio Subway customer finally received a refund after she was charged over $1,000 for sandwich nearly two months ago, Letitia Bishop's problems aren't over yet.

What are the details?

This financially nightmarish tale began Jan. 5 when Bishop stopped in a Subway that was part of the Thorntons Oil store in Columbus, Business Insider said.

She soon learned that her debit card was charged to the tune of $1,021.50 for her sandwich purchase, according to WSYX-TV.

When Bishop went back to the store to resolve the issue, it had closed down, the station said. Her numerous attempts to resolve the issue through Subway's corporate office were unsuccessful, as WSYX said she was unable to speak to anyone who could help her.

Bishop told the station, "I’m just trying to make ends meet at this point. Stressed, overwhelmed — I couldn’t get groceries at one point because my account was negative.”

Business Insider said it conducted an interview with Bishop, and she said her financial situation has been more dire due to raising two young children on a social worker's salary. In fact, she told the outlet she was forced to prioritize bill payments while living off of credit cards.

"It was very difficult," she told Business Insider. "I have never had to feel like we're going to have just to get spaghetti, and that's going to be that."

Finally, a break — but not quite

The outlet said after Bishop filed a complaint with the Better Business Bureau in Connecticut — where Subway's headquarters is located — she got her refund over the weekend from the regional manager of Thorntons, which apparently owns the Subway franchise that was part of the store.

Interestingly, Bishop told Business Insider that the regional manager said Thorntons had never used an online portal for issuing the refund, so the preference was to give her cash in person at the gas station.

"She basically counted all this money," Bishop told the outlet, adding that the regional manager "gave us this cash and made us sign a copy of this receipt."

On a positive note, she added to Business Insider that she also was offered free dinners once a week for eight weeks at a new restaurant the Thorntons chain was opening.

But there was another negative development.

More from the outlet:

Despite the resolution, Bishop faced another hurdle when depositing the cash at her local Huntington Bank branch. She said the funds were placed on hold, meaning she couldn't access them to settle her outstanding bills.

"I just honestly don't have the emotional space to deal with this because literally it's stressing me out so much," she added to Business Insider.

The outlet reported that Thorntons, Subway, and Huntington Bank did not immediately respond to its requests for comment.

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Philadelphia police charge combatant over gruesome death of man crushed by subway train



A fight broke out Thursday night at a subway station in the crime-ridden city of Philadelphia. What started with fists and raised voices ultimately ended with screams and the cold steel of a SEPTA train's wheels. Although police are still investigating the gruesome incident, the surviving combatant has been charged with manslaughter.

The fight, which was filmed by a nearby commuter, broke out between two men around 4:30 p.m. on the SEPTA train platform for the Market-Frankford line at 34th and Market streets, reported WCAU-TV.

Philadelphia Police Inspector Kpana Massaquoi said it "appeared to be some type of physical altercation. We don't know exactly what took place prior to that to initiate this, but it's being investigated."

Footage shows the victim holding a smaller man against a pillar near the edge of the platform. The smaller man, identified by police as Chaz Wearing — a 40-year-old with a criminal history — appears to demand something from the victim. It's unclear what precisely the two are arguing about, but the threatening nature of their gesticulation is unmistakable.

Wearing punches the victim in the face, knocking him off balance. As the victim stumbles backward, toward the edge, Wearing attempts to strike him once more. Apparently noticing his own proximity to the edge and the fast-approaching train, Wearing recoils, falling away from the edge. The victim, meanwhile, slips headfirst over the edge and onto the tracks below.

Despite the conductor's apparent efforts to brake, the incoming SEPTA train runs over the victim roughly three seconds after he fell, eliciting screams, cries, and gasps from onlookers in the vicinity.

In the longer, uncut footage of the incident that shows the victim's lifeless form coiled around the train's front wheels, one witness can be heard saying, "That is f***ing ridiculous. ... Oh my God, I feel so f***ing terrible."

Wearing was apprehended blocks away at the 40th Street Station. The Philadelphia District Attorney's Office announced Friday that he was charged with involuntary manslaughter, reported WCAU.

Wearing is believed to be homeless and was wanted in relation to a strangulation case in Delaware County, according to investigators. He reportedly has a criminal history in Clinton and Lycoming counties as well.

The victim has yet to be identified.

— (@)

The railway announced a temporary closure of the 34th Street Station after the incident on account of "police activity."

The Thursday incident comes just days after Philadelphia's new Democrat mayor, Cherelle Parker, stated in her inaugural address, "I want the world to know that I am fully committed to ending this sense of lawlessness and bringing order back to our city and a sense of lawfulness," reported the Philadelphia Inquirer.

Five days into the new year, and Philadelphia has already seen three homicides. In 2023 and in 2022, there were 410 and 514 murders, respectively. According to Neighborhood Scout, the likelihood of falling victim to a violent crime in the city is 1 in 123. The likelihood of becoming a victim of a property crime in the city is 1 in 38.

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Woman thankful for subway 'hero' who fired warning shots to save her from robbery — but she wishes gun was never used: Report



A woman told the New York Post she's thankful for the subway "hero" who fired warning shots to save her from a would-be robber — but added to the paper that she wishes a gun was never used.

Police last week arrested the alleged shooter — 43-year-old John Rote — and charged him with criminal possession of a weapon, reckless endangerment, criminal possession of a firearm, and menacing, WABC-TV reported.

But observers fed up with crooks getting away with crime and upset when regular folks get into trouble when they step in to prevent crime are livid over Rote's arrest. He has no prior arrests.

'I do think he is a hero, but ...'

The unidentified 40-year-old woman told the Post, “Of course, I am happy that that man tried to help me and that nobody was injured during this incident, but it’s scary to think that people are carrying guns around the city. I understand why people do it, they see it as their only means of protection."

She added to the paper, “In this case the man risked a lot to protect me, his safety, and the safety of other people on the platform. Yes, I do think he is a hero, but I don’t know, I would likely think him a bigger hero if he tried to help me without the gun. In my eyes, the gun is a little extreme. It was a very dangerous situation, anything could have happened.”

What else do we know?

The woman told the Post that a man — identified as 49-year-old Matthew Roesch, who's homeless — allegedly was harassing her for money Tuesday after he held open an emergency gate at the 49th Street station near Times Square.

When she tried to walk through the gate, the man blocked her and demanded money, the paper said, citing court documents. But the woman kept walking.

“He followed me. He kept demanding money, and he said, ‘If you don’t give me money, I’m going to take your bag.’ I was trying to walk away from him, but he was following me and getting very close,” the woman recalled to the Post, which added that police know of Roesch's M.O.

The paper said when Roesch allegedly moved to snatch the woman's bag, Rote pulled a gun and allegedly fired several rounds across the subway while warning Roesch to leave her alone.

The Post said Rote was seen in surveillance video pulling a gun from his bag and shouting, “Get the f*** away from her!”

Roesch soon paused, the paper said, and the woman was able to run away.

“I was terrified," the woman recalled to the Post. "I was feeling fear, panic. I was ready for anything, to fight for my life in any way. The gun was pointed in my direction, and that’s all I saw. It was a feeling of pure terror that I don’t wish on anyone.”

What happened next?

Police arrived within minutes and arrested Roesch, who was charged with attempted robbery, the paper said. While Rote fled the scene, the Post said he was arrested Wednesday at his Manhattan job after an anonymous tipster recognized him.

The Post said Rote allegedly admitted to the shooting and told cops he tossed the gun in the East River. Law enforcement sources added to the paper that they don’t believe Rote was aiming at the homeless man but rather was trying to scare him off.

Fox News said Rote posted $10,000 bail and returned to his home in Astoria, Queens, on Friday. He's due back in court Nov. 14, the cable news network added.

Woman slams authorities

The woman told the Post that authorities aren't doing enough to deter subway crime, noting that earlier that same day last week on the 49th Street platform she saw another man openly masturbating on a bench: “That set the tone for the day.”

“The [Metropolitan Transportation Authority] and the NYPD aren’t doing much to protect the public. But it’s very dangerous. There are many incidents where weapons were involved and it ended badly. Honestly, I am against people carrying weapons with them around the city,” she added to the paper.

“The MTA increased fares, but nothing changed. Two incidents in one day. They let these people do whatever they want," she also told the Post. "This incident is entirely the fault of the MTA and the NYPD. They need to increase rider safety.”

The woman also told the paper stronger punishments are needed for repeat offenders, noting that the homeless man who accosted her was let go, which "sends a message that they can do what they want and get away with it."

“He’s going to continue to do this again and again," she added to the Post. "I rarely ever see patrols on the subway. They only start patrolling after something happens somewhere. They should be there every day, making sure riders are safe.”

In related news:

NYC subway rider randomly stabbed in head, face with screwdriver youtu.be

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Subway ‘Vigilantes’ Aren’t The Problem, They’re A Symptom Of NYC’s Crime Catastrophe

If NYC truly cracked down on crime, a known aggressor like Roesch wouldn’t have robbed and Rote wouldn’t have shot.