Thug shoves elderly woman off NYC subway platform, onto tracks in reportedly random attack



An "emotionally disturbed person" shoved an elderly woman off a New York City subway platform and onto the tracks below Saturday morning, the New York Post reported, citing police sources.

WABC-TV reported that the attack was random.

'Now that I’m getting older, I am more concerned about safety on the subway, and I try to stay away from the edge.'

The 70-year-old unidentified victim was on the northbound side of the 57th Street and 7th Avenue station just before 11:30 a.m. when the suspect approached her from behind and shoved her down to the tracks, police told the Post.

Witnesses jumped down to the tracks and pulled the woman back upon the platform, the paper said.

The victim was taken to Cornell Hospital in stable condition; she was being treated for a head wound, police added to the Post.

The suspect's name wasn't immediately released, but police sources told the paper said he's a known "emotionally disturbed person." The suspect was arrested, the Post said, adding that charges were pending against him.

Two women who work at a midtown Manhattan hotel told the paper they pray for their own safety on their daily train ride to and from Astoria.

"I leave my life in the hands of God. Nothing else," Maria Giannoutsos, 61, told the Post, adding that "you never know what can happen in one second."

Iljana Gilezan, 60, added to the paper that the attack left her "scared."

"You also have a lot of homeless on the train," she noted to the Post. "But we have to go to work, so we have to take the train, and I'm always looking straight to God to protect me."

Gilezan also praised the "courage" of the good Samaritans who pulled the elderly victim from the tracks, the paper said.

RELATED: Creep allegedly pushes man onto subway train tracks, runs off. But witnesses rescue victim just before train arrives at Bronx stop.

CHARLY TRIBALLEAU/AFP/Getty Images

Paul Corley — a 67-year-old psychiatrist — told the Post he's concerned about senseless violence growing more frequent.

"Now that I'm getting older, I am more concerned about safety on the subway, and I try to stay away from the edge," he noted to the paper, adding that he was happy to see more metal barriers along the tracks.

"This is a scary story, but also an inspiring story," Corely also told the Post. "To get pushed and be saved by a fellow New Yorker is very inspiring."

Blaze News has reported extensively about similar attacks in New York City's subway system:

  • An elderly man died in May after the suspect in his killing — who was in police custody just hours earlier — shoved him down subway entrance steps in New York City.
  • A suspect who's been deported four times faced upgraded charges in March after an elderly man he's accused of shoving onto New York City subway tracks died.
  • A great-grandfather was shoved onto New York City subway tracks and suffered a fractured spine in September while the arrested suspect claimed the victim "called me a woman."
  • An award-winning artist was "instantly paralyzed" after being pushed into a moving train in a New York City subway attack in May 2023.
  • An attacker allegedly pushed a man onto subway train tracks and ran off in October 2022, but witnesses rescued the victim just before a train arrived at the Bronx stop.

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Thug who's been deported 4 times faces upgraded charges after elderly man he's accused of shoving onto NYC subway tracks dies



An illegal alien who's been deported four times faces upgraded charges now that the elderly Air Force veteran he's accused of shoving onto subway tracks in New York City earlier this month has died.

Bairon Posada-Hernandez — a Honduran national with 15 prior charges on his record — was initially charged with attempted murder in connection with the incident, the Department of Homeland Security said.

'I hope he rots in hell.'

However, the New York Daily News, citing court records, reported that charges against the 34-year-old suspect were upgraded to murder Wednesday after the elderly victim who had been on life support recently passed away.

More from the Daily News:

Richard Williams, 83, was waiting on the downtown platform for the F and Q trains at the Lexington Ave.-63rd St. station when he was shoved onto the tracks around 11:30 a.m. on March 8. Moments before, the assailant had pushed a 30-year-old man standing next to Williams onto the tracks as well without saying a word, cops said.

Williams was rushed to New York-Presbyterian Hospital Weill Cornell in critical condition, the paper said, adding that his eldest daughter said he wasn't expected to survive.

“It doesn’t look good,” Debbie Williams told the Daily News from her father's bedside. Richard Williams died on March 17, the paper said.

Police told the Daily News that the city’s medical examiner attributed Williams’ cause of death to multiple blunt-force injuries.

RELATED: 'Heinous' thug accused of shoving 83-year-old military vet onto NYC subway tracks was deported 4 times, charged 15 times: DHS

"I hope he rots in hell,” Debbie Williams said of the suspect, according to the paper.

Posada-Hernandez pleaded not guilty earlier this month; his arraignment on the new charges is scheduled for Monday, the paper said.

The suspect's attorney Michael Papson told the Daily News his client "vehemently denies these allegations. He’s never been arrested in the state of New York — ever.”

However, Homeland Security Deputy Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis had a different take, calling Posada-Hernandez a "heinous" and "serial criminal" who "should never have been able to walk our streets and harm innocent Americans."

More from DHS:

Posada-Hernandez first entered the country on January 2, 2008, and has been deported four different times, most recently in 2020. He entered illegally a fifth time at an unknown date and location.

The suspect has a lengthy criminal history, including 15 prior charges such as simple assault, domestic violence, obstruction of police, possession of a weapon, drug possession, and aggravated assault.

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'Heinous' thug accused of shoving 83-year-old military vet onto NYC subway tracks was deported 4 times, charged 15 times: DHS



The "heinous" male accused of shoving an 83-year-old military veteran off a New York City subway station platform and onto the train tracks last weekend was deported four times and has 15 prior charges on his record, the Department of Homeland Security said.

DHS on Thursday added that Immigration and Customs Enforcement has asked New York authorities not to release illegal alien suspect Bairon Posada-Hernandez, whom Deputy Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis called a "heinous" and "serial criminal" who "should never have been able to walk our streets and harm innocent Americans."

'I hope he rots in hell.'

Posada-Hernandez was arrested for attempted murder Tuesday in connection with Sunday's incident, during which he also allegedly pushed a 30-year-old man onto the subway train tracks, the agency said.

DHS said ICE on Tuesday placed a detainer on Posada-Hernandez, a Honduran national. Bis added that "DHS is calling upon New York sanctuary politicians to commit to this ICE detainer."

More from DHS:

Posada-Hernandez first entered the country on January 2, 2008, and has been deported four different times, most recently in 2020. He entered illegally a fifth time at an unknown date and location.

The suspect has a lengthy criminal history, including 15 prior charges such as simple assault, domestic violence, obstruction of police, possession of a weapon, drug possession, and aggravated assault.

One of the victims of the subway shove, a 30-year-old man, reportedly is in stable condition, while the other, an 83-year-old Air Force veteran, remains in critical condition, the agency said.

RELATED: Exclusive: ICE urges Georgia sheriff not to release illegal alien ‘monster’ accused of sexually assaulting 10-year-old girl

The daughter of elderly victim Richard Williams told the New York Daily News, "He's unresponsive. He's on a respirator. No changes. He's considered critical. We're praying for a miracle. It's horrible."

As for Posada-Hernandez, Williams' daughter told the Daily News, “I hope he rots in hell."

"To push one person down and then to push another down? I thank God that young man that was pushed first — that man, I have to give him my thanks. He helped my father out of the tracks, carried him pretty much," she added to the paper. "The people there that helped, it was amazing what happened."

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Thug shoves 83-year-old man from behind onto NYC subway tracks in reportedly random attack



New York City police said an unidentified individual approached an 83-year-old man from behind on a Manhattan subway platform Sunday morning and shoved the man onto the tracks.

Police said the same individual moments prior also shoved a 30-year-old man onto the tracks.

'I get panic attacks just thinking about getting on the subway.'

The culprit fled on foot to parts unknown, police said. A WABC-TV video report characterized the attacks as random.

The station Tuesday morning said a person of interest was picked up overnight in Brooklyn, and while his identity was not yet known, charges against him are pending.

The below video report aired prior to the arrest of the person of interest:

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

Both victims of the attack were taken to a hospital, the station said, adding that the 30-year-old victim was said to be stable, while the 83-year-old man was in critical condition.

John Rodriguez, the younger victim, told WABC in a previous story that he's recovering from an injured shoulder and neck as a result of falling onto the tracks after the shove.

Rodriguez, a Queens resident, told the station he was on his way to work when the completely unprovoked attack took place: "I panicked, I started asking for help, not only for me but for the other man that was pushed."

Rodriguez started recording as a good Samaritan tried to help him, WABC reported, adding that was the moment when police said the elderly victim was shoved.

NYPD officers flooded the subway and boarded trains to search for the suspect, the station said.

Rodriguez added to WABC that he's not exactly looking forward to riding the trains again: "I get panic attacks just thinking about getting on the subway."

The NYPD said nine subway shoves have occurred so far in 2026, which is up compared to three this time last year, the station said.

Police said those with information about this incident should call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public also can submit tips by logging on the Crime Stoppers website at https://crimestoppers.nypdonline.org, on X @NYPDTips.

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NYC subway rider pays brutal price after asking fellow passenger to stop talking loudly on cell phone



A New York City subway rider was stabbed in the stomach after asking his attacker to stop talking loudly on his cell phone aboard a train Saturday morning, police told the New York Post.

The attacker allegedly responded to the request by punching the 54-year-old victim several times in the face before stabbing him in the gut, police told the Post.

'I guarantee you they were being loud on purpose to have a reason to stab someone.'

The attack occurred aboard an E train at the Jamaica Center–Parsons/Archer station in Queens around 11 a.m., police noted to the paper.

The attacker jumped off the train at the station and was on the loose, police told the Post, while the victim was taken to Jamaica Hospital in stable condition.

The victim's daughter told the paper in a follow-up story that more police are needed in the NYC subway system.

“They’re supposed to be on the station,” the daughter, who requested anonymity, told the Post on Sunday. “I don’t really see them as much anymore.”

The paper added that the victim was "heading home from his restaurant gig" when the attack occurred.

“It’s a crazy world we live in,” the daughter told the Post as her father — a waiter — recovers in the hospital.

Commenters on WPIX-TV's Facebook post about the attack agreed:

  • "Despicable behavior!!!" one commenter declared.
  • "Sounds about right for NYC," another user said, adding that "NY needs more lenient gun laws for law-abiding citizens."
  • "I guarantee you they were being loud on purpose to have a reason to stab someone," another commenter wrote.
  • "F**king animals," another user said.
  • "This cant be true — remember when [Democrat Gov. Kathy] Hochul said it's safe?!" a commenter reacted with just a bit of sarcasm sprinkled in.
  • "I can’t anymore," another user lamented. "I just don’t get it."

Stabbing spike?

The Post said the stabbing occurred just a day after a homeless man was charged after being caught on video allegedly slashing two men in their faces on a Queens subway platform last week.

More from the paper:

Tyquan Manassa, 28, was charged Friday in connection to the Wednesday afternoon attacks on two men on the southbound platform of the E and F train at the Union Turnpike station in Kew Gardens, the NYPD said.

Manassa was identified as the stabbing suspect after cops busted him for a separate, unhinged outburst at the Ward’s Island shelter where he’d been staying Thursday, sources said.

RELATED: 'White boy,' 'cracker': Subway rider dares to glance at hollering female behind him — so she veers into beatdown mode: Cops

“Unfortunately, I feel like it happens so often that it’s kind of like we’re desensitized to it,” Fatima Shahid, 18, told the Post in regard to subway violence.

Shahid, who lives in the area, added to the paper that "it does make me feel a little unsafe. I’m glad that I don’t take the train as often as I used to. ... So I feel a little OK, but I know that somebody who does it every day would be scared and feel unsafe.”

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‘Exploded All Over’: Border Patrol Agent Testifies After Viral Subway Sandwich Attack

'could smell the onions and mustard'

Thug punches, kicks, stomps man to death in subway station because he didn't like the way victim looked at him, officials say



New York City police said a 25-year-old male admitted to beating a man to death inside a Brooklyn subway station, ABC News reported.

Police said officers arrived at the Jay Street station just after 3 p.m. Tuesday after getting a call about an "aided male," the news network said.

Police added that suspect had a katana sword — with a blade of more than 20 inches in length — resting in his lap at the time of the arrest, WABC reported.

Upon arrival, officers "observed an unidentified male, unconscious and unresponsive, with trauma about the body," police added to ABC News.

Paramedics transported the victim to New York-Presbyterian Brooklyn Methodist Hospital in "critical condition"; he later was "pronounced deceased," police told the news network.

The suspect punched, kicked, and stomped 64-year-old Nicola Tanzi — and allegedly admitted to detectives that he did it because he didn't like the way the victim looked at him, police told WABC-TV, which added that Tanzi suffered a fractured skull.

Authorities named the suspect as 25-year-old David Mazariegos late Wednesday afternoon, WABC reported, adding that he's been charged with murder, robbery, and grand larceny.

Authorities added that Mazariegos has 17 prior arrests, including for assault earlier this year, petit larceny, and graffiti, WABC said.

RELATED: 'White boy,' 'cracker': Subway rider dares to glance at hollering female behind him — so she veers into beatdown mode: Cops

WABC said Mazariegos was arrested around 10 p.m. Tuesday after NYPD officers assigned to the subway in Times Square saw him sitting on the sidewalk.

Police added that suspect had a katana sword — with a blade of more than 20 inches in length — resting in his lap at the time of the arrest, WABC reported.

What's more, police told WABC that Mazariegos also was in possession of four of the victim's credit cards — including one the suspect allegedly used to make a Target purchase Tuesday night.

RELATED: 4 females — ages 13 to 15 — arrested after they beat, tried to rob 71-year-old woman while she was on her way to church: Cops

Detectives also are looking into similarities between Tuesday's murder and the death of a worker who confronted a shoplifter at a Morton Williams in Hell's Kitchen last month, WABC said.

More on what led to the deadly attack, according to WABC:

Police say the suspect was pulling on the exit gate at the Jay Street-MetroTech station, attempting to gain entry around 3 p.m. Tuesday when Tanzi approached.

The two exchanged words, and the suspect sucker punched the 64-year-old, knocking him to the ground.

According to investigators, video from MTA security cameras recorded the suspect then punching, kicking, and stomping the victim's head 15 times while he was on the ground.

Police say the suspect was then seen boarding a Bronx-bound No. 2 train.

Candles burned at the scene of the crime Wednesday in memory of Tanzi, WABC said, adding that others said he was a security guard and a nice guy.

— (@)

Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch credited the department's domain awareness system, which sent photos of the suspect to officers' phones, after which the suspect was arrested, WABC reported.

"Right after this horrific attack, the entire NYPD received an emergency alert to their phones with photos of the suspect and a physical description," Tisch said on X. "Eagle-eyed cops working near Times Square recognized this perp from the photos they had just received and immediately brought this dangerous criminal into custody."

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'White boy,' 'cracker': Subway rider dares to glance at hollering female behind him — so she veers into beatdown mode: Cops



A New York City subway rider dared to glance at hollering female seated behind him over the weekend, and she reacted by repeatedly hitting the man with her fists — and racial slurs — the New York Post said, citing police and sources.

The paper — which characterized the female in question as a "hate-fueled attacker" and "anti-white" — said 20-year-old Genesis Gittens was yelling on a southbound L train at the 1st Avenue and East 14th Street station in Manhattan just after 2 a.m. Sunday.

'They’re getting even more brazen these days.'

A 28-year-old man sitting in front of her turned to look, the Post said, citing authorities and law enforcement sources.

With that, the Post — citing a criminal complaint — reported that Gittens "flew into a rage, repeatedly punching the straphanger in the face as she sneered, 'White boy' and 'cracker.'"

Police said the victim was left with a bloody nose and refused medical attention, according to the paper, which characterized the attack as "unprovoked."

Gittens was arrested less than an hour later and charged with third-degree assault as a hate crime, the Post said, citing the complaint.

The paper — citing court records — said she pleaded not guilty during her arraignment and was released. It isn't clear if another court date for Gittens has been scheduled.

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

Photo by Gary Hershorn/Getty Images

Commenters on X issued pointed reactions to the incident.

  • "These stories just keep coming," one commenter said. "NYC is a cesspool."
  • "They’re getting even more brazen these days," another user observed.
  • "Why doesn’t the city employ more officers to ride the subway?" another commenter wondered.
  • "Another one of those 'safe' days on the NYC subway," another user quipped.

Another commenter asked, "Have we learned no lesson on where to sit on a train? Don’t stand too close to the door, either, or you can get pulled out of the train or have your phone or purse stolen. Don’t stand close to the edge of train platform [because] you can get pushed [into] the incoming train. Don’t fall asleep, or you can be burned alive. Maybe you should not ride the train alone or NEVER."

Indeed, 23-year-old Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska was minding her own business, scrolling on her phone on a train in Charlotte, North Carolina, on Aug. 22, when a male seated behind her suddenly stood up and repeatedly stabbed Zarutska in the neck. She bled out on the train after the unprovoked attack and died.

The killer was soon heard saying, "I got that white girl," surveillance video appeared to show. Suspect Decarlos Brown has been charged with first-degree murder, but a federal criminal complaint also was filed against him last week in U.S. District Court in Charlotte, charging Brown with one count of committing an act causing death on a mass transportation system.

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US Attorney Doesn’t Rule Out Civil Rights Charges Against Suspected Light Rail Killer

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DC Sub Chucker Loses His Lunch, His Cool, And His Sweet DOJ Job In Pitiful Street Tantrum

A month ago, this kind of public disturbance may have gone unaddressed, and it would have emboldened more bad behavior.