Shocking smartphone footage has captured the moment a man savagely attacked a New York City subway rider, yelling an anti-gay slur and ripping out the victim’s hair while other passengers looked on.
The male suspect assaulted the 22-year-old man on an A train traveling northbound approaching the 190th Street subway station in Manhattan at around 2.22pm on Saturday 19 March.
The NYPD said that the suspect began making anti-gay remarks towards the victim as they sat on opposite seats on the train carriage.
“I’m sick of all you f***,” he allegedly said.
“I wish I had my pepper spray,” he said, spitting on the victim.
The suspect then continued saying “I have to start carrying my pepper spray” before spitting on the victim a second time.
When the victim stood up to move away from the attacker, the suspect launched at him, grabbing him by the hair and punching him repeatedly.
Video of the attack, filmed by a bystander, shows the suspect holding onto the victim’s hair, violently shoving and pushing him around the carriage and striking him on the head multiple times.
At least one person is seen sitting in the carriage looking on, not including the person behind the camera.
The victim was taken to hospital with lacerations to the head.
Police released the smartphone footage and two still images of the suspect as they appealed to the public for help in identifying the suspect.
A reward of up to $3,500 has been offered for information leading to his arrest.
Police said the incident is being treated as a possible hate crime.
Anyone with information in regard to 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). People can also submit tips anonymously on the Crime Stoppers website at https://crimestoppers.nypdonline.org/ or on Twitter @NYPDTips
