The NYPD is searching for an unidentified perpetrator who landed a 37-year-old subway conductor in the hospital after punching him in the face aboard a Queens A train early Thursday morning.
Cops say that around 1:33 a.m. on Jan. 15, officers from the 101st Precinct and Transit District 23 responded to a 911 call reporting an assault on the conductor. The incident occurred while a Manhattan-bound A train was pulling into the Beach 25th Street station in Far Rockaway.
According to police, the victim reported being approached by the unidentified perpetrator, who then punched him in the face, causing him to hit his head on the train cabin wall.
EMS personnel rushed the victim to St. John’s Episcopal Hospital, where he was in stable condition.
Police are still searching for the perpetrator, who they only described as wearing a black coat. They have yet to make an arrest and continue to investigate.
NYC Transit President Demetrius Crichlow, in a statement, said “Transit employees simply doing their jobs should never be subject to such outrageous and unacceptable attacks.
“With our vast camera network, we are confident our law enforcement partners will find the person responsible who then must face justice for their reprehensible actions,” he added.
Transport Workers Union Local 100 President John Chiarello, in a statement, called the incident a “senseless and vicious attack.”
“They say overall crime numbers are down, but our members are getting attacked more often,” Chiarello said. “We’re planning a campaign to educate our members that if they are in a dangerous situation to retreat and call the police. But that doesn’t give the Transit Authority a pass on their obligation to provide us with a safe workplace.”
The NYPD classifies the infraction as a felony assault, a crime category that is up 112.5% in the 101st Precinct through Jan. 11 compared to the same period last year. There have been 17 felony assaults in the precinct so far this year.
Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website at crimestoppers.
