A dozen bloody attacks on NYC transit system in two weeks
Three murders. Five stabbings. Countless other attacks.
Over the past two weeks, more than a dozen people have been violently attacked on the New York City transit system, including three fatally, in a string of bloody, frightening incidents.
As more New Yorkers get back on the subways and buses in the waning days of the COVID-19 pandemic, major felony transit crime has shot up nearly 42% so far this year compared to 2021, NYPD data show.
While transit crime so far this year is 5% lower than for the same period in 2019, before ridership was decimated by the pandemic, violence has remained a consistent concern for commuters, many of whom have no other way to get around.
Here is a rundown of some of the most violent incidents to happen on the transit system in the past two weeks:
1. Sept. 30: Dad of two fatally stabbed on the L train
Tommy Bailey, a hard-working father of two known as a “Canarsie legend” for his athletic prowess, is stabbed to death on his commute home from work.
The steamfitter had allegedly gotten into an argument with Alvin Charles, 43, during the ride, prompting the homeless man to fatally stab him in the neck near the Atlantic Avenue station.
Loved ones of Bailey, also 43, claimed his death could’ve been prevented had Charles not been freed on bail for a similar subway stabbing that happened in July 2021.
“If they [had] done something about it back then, Tommy would have still been alive and we wouldn’t be talking right now,” said Jaylin, Bailey’s 18-year-old neighbor in Canarsie.
“His death is on their hands. No common sense. That’s sad.”
2. Oct. 1: MTA bus driver slashed on the job
A 52-year-old MTA bus driver is slashed by an irate customer on a Saturday morning in Harlem.
The suspect got angry with the driver when he didn’t open the rear doors of the bus, prompting him to march up to the worker, spit on him and slash him twice on his left forearm as he threatened to “go get my gun.
“I live in these projects,” the suspect told the wounded driver before fleeing.
3. Oct. 2: The ‘Green Goblin’ attack
A group of women decked out in bizarre, neon green bodysuits brutally attacked and robbed two 19-year-olds at the Times Square subway station around 2 a.m. after one of the victims apparently bumped into them.
“She said she was attacked by aliens,” the mother of one of the victims told The Post the day after the assault.
“Yesterday was her birthday. This is how she spent her 19th birthday. I hope they get what they deserve and then some because it’s disgusting.”
The suspects made off with a cell phone and purse and remain at large.
4. Oct. 3: Man randomly shoved onto subway tracks at Union Square
A 25-year-old straphanger headed home from work and waiting for a No. 6 train was suddenly pushed onto the trackbed around 9:30 p.m., allegedly by an emotionally disturbed homeless man.
Hours after Clarence Anderson allegedly shoved the man, who was saved by good Samaritans, he attacked another innocent New Yorker – a construction worker toiling near Columbus Circle.
“He shouldn’t have been on the streets,” the subway-shove victim, who needed 18 stitches to close the gash on his head, told The Post.
“I won’t be taking the subway after 7 p.m. again. … Something needs to be changed or fixed.”
5. Oct. 4: Man slashed at Times Square subway station
A 31-year-old man was slashed in the leg at the tourist hotspot after getting into a fight with another guy just after 11 p.m.
Dramatic video posted to Twitter shows officers treating the injured and bleeding man on the subway platform, with a trail of blood behind him.
It’s not clear what sparked the fued.
6. Oct. 6: Man randomly stabbed after ‘shoulder tap’
A 59-year-old man was stabbed in the shoulder around 1 p.m. inside the 125th Street A, B, C and D station in Harlem.
The victim had missed his stop and was walking up the stairs to get to the southbound platform when he encountered someone who was blocking his path and tapped him on the shoulder, police said.
The pair then started arguing before the suspect took out a knife and stabbed him.
7. Oct. 6: Man slashed, possibly for wearing the wrong color
A 45-year-old man was slashed in the face while passing through the turnstile at the A train station at Pitkin and Grant avenues in East New York, Brooklyn, around 5 p.m.
The victim claimed to police that he did not know his attacker but said he was wearing blue and that his assailant may have believed he was a gang member.
The suspect took off on a scooter.
8. Oct. 6: Beloved father fatally stabbed while commuting home
Charles Moore, 38, was headed home from his job at Citi Field around 10:30 p.m. when he was knifed to death at the 176th Street and Jerome Avenue station.
Saquan Lemons, 27, allegedly randomly killed the dad on the crowded platform shortly after “tumbling out” of a No. 4 train, prosecutors said during his arraignment on murder charges.
Lemons’ attorney requested he undergo a psychiatric evaluation.
9. Oct. 8: Teen hunted, beaten and stabbed on the Upper East Side
A 17-year-old victim commuting home from his job at Shake Shack was violently attacked Saturday afternoon at the East 53rd Street and Lexington Avenue station, leaving him with six stab wounds.
The attackers, who were clad in all black and wore face masks, had gone to the teen’s job asking where he was and then followed him into the subway system.
10. Oct. 9: Dad of four fatally stabbed on the bus
Lamont Barkley, 55, was on a BX19 bus around 8:30 p.m. Sunday when he was killed by a woman and man he’d been arguing with, police said.
Before to the fatal stabbing, Barkley had gotten into an argument with the woman at a nearby bar, Glen Roy’s Public House, prompting her to call the man to come to the area, police sources and neighbors said.
At some point, the trio got on the bus, where the man and woman attacked Barkley, sources said.
Ebony Jackson, 42, was taken into custody in connection with the incident and charged with murder and manslaughter Monday.
11. Oct. 10: Woman bashed in head in random attack
A 49-year-old woman was waiting for the No. 2 train at the Cathedral Parkway subway station in Harlem around 2:30 a.m. Monday when she was suddenly whacked in the head with an unknown object.
No words were exchanged before her attacker, a stranger, took off, cops said.
