By Chris Oliver
A 45-year-old subway rider was stabbed to death in Lower Manhattan early Sunday morning.
The city’s Medical Examiner’s office has identified the victim as Cidronio Ruiz-Hernandez , of Paterson, N.J. He collapsed near the token booth at the Rector St. subway stop early Sunday morning in Lower Manhattan.
He was riding on the northbound N train when he was stabbed “multiple times in the torso” by an assailant during an altercation on the train at about 4:50 a.m., said a Medical Examiner spokesperson.
“The train pulled into the station and the guy came stumbling out, bleeding from the chest,” police sources said. “He went down right near the token booth. The clerk notified us. There were not many people on the train and we don’t know who did the stabbing.”
He was stabbed at least seven times in the chest.
Police said they are still seeking witnesses who may have seen the early morning altercation or where the victim was coming from.
The victim was taken to NYU Downtown Hospital and pronounced dead just 20 minutes after the attack. He also had back wounds, possibly from the stabbing assault.
The stabbing in the normally quiet Financial District during the weekend hours came as a surprise to many residents and workers in Lower Manhattan.
“I take that subway all the time,” said Tim White, a restaurant worker who lives in Brooklyn. “We close at 4 a.m. and there are hardly any people on the train. The last thing you think is there’s going to be an attack like this. Luckily I was going the other way on the train. But on a Sunday, we closed earlier.”
He did not witness the attack.
Police said Ruiz-Hernandez had emigrated from Mexico recently to make a living in New York.
“He had an alien green card on him, but it was probably forged,” one police source said.
Police said the victim has a wife and family in Mexico and arrangements were underway to prepare for his funeral.
Train service was out several hours during the crime scene investigation and before the early morning Monday commute.
Police asked anyone who may have seen this crime or has information about to call the police hotline at 1800-577-TIPS. All information will be kept confidential.
WWW Downtown Express
