A 78-year-old man was brutally beaten while riding a New York City subway Thursday afternoon after reportedly asking two individuals to turn down the volume of their music.
Police are on the lookout for the two suspects, a man and a woman, who they believe assaulted the man on a subway train in the Upper West Side after he went up to them to ask them not to play their music so loud.
“I really wish they would do something about this. It was horrible. I was attacked and bloody like crazy. I had five stitches, I’m all banged up,” the victim told PIX11 news. “It was a nightmare. I’m not doing well at all.”
As a result of the attack, the man went to Mount Sinai Saint Luke’s Hospital to treat his bruises and lacerations. Witnesses took videos and photos as the incident unfolded at around 3:30 p.m.
Police are offering up to $3,500 for information on the suspects. Any information, can be relayed confidentially by calling 1-800-577-TIPS (8477).
One of the suspects appears to be a black man with a goatee and is described as being about 6’0” tall and 185 pounds. He was last seen wearing a red bandana, black sweatshirt, gray jeans, and Nike shoes. The other suspect, a black woman with glasses, was last seen wearing orange sweatpants, a black T-shirt, and black jacket with fur lining.
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The attack comes as crime on the subway has become a major issue both in the city and in the state as both the city’s Metro Transit Authority (MTA) and Democrat Governor Kathy Hochul have faced criticism over their handling of the issue.
City officials have argued that proportionally speaking, crime on the Big Apple’s subway system is not that bad.
“We completely respect and share what the riders are feeling,” MTA Chairman Janno Lieber said at a recent meeting. “We have less, broadly speaking, less subway transit crime, numerically, than we had before COVID.”
Yet in recent weeks, NYC Mayor Eric Adams and Hochul have rolled out new proposals to crack down on crime, including increase surveillance and police officers in the system, and providing 50 beds to psychiatric centers for unstable individuals.
The plan was slammed by New York Republican gubernatorial candidate Lee Zeldin, who appears to be in a competitive race with the incumbent, according to recent polls.
“How out of touch are you if you think that providing 50 beds is going to take care of this issue?” Zeldin said last week “She says nothing about cashless bail … nothing about DAs refusing to enforce the law.”