Rider Slashed In Face Following Argument On 2 Train
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- An argument on a subway train in Brooklyn ended with a man slashed across the face.
The suspect behind the violent attack is still on the loose.
The incident happened on the Manhattan-bound 2 train late Wednesday night.
Bloodied and bandaged, the 38-year-old victim was taken by ambulance from the Hoyt Street Station to Methodist Hospital.
"I went over and asked, 'What happened to you?' He said he got slashed on the face," witness Alex Urbelis said.
Police said an argument turned physical on the train at around 11:30 p.m.
"The victim told me it was a box cutter," Urbelis said. "He was able to wrestle the box cutter away from the perpetrator. At which point he threw it away. The person picked it up again, and as he was leaving the train he slashed his face and then ran out the door as the doors closed."
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The suspect, believed to be a Hispanic man, got off the train at the Nevins Street Station, CBS2's Cline-Thomas reported.
"There was blood all over the platform on Nevins last night," commuter Harold Hedgman said.
Hedgman said he was rushing to work and had no idea what happened.
What he described next could be the suspect.
"I seen the guy. He was bleeding. He had a brown coat on. He had blood all over the place," Hedgman said.
The victim got off at the next stop, Hoyt Street, where he got help.
On Thursday morning, some riders who heard the news said they were being extra vigilant.
"It seems like it's a trend around this area," commuter John Sutherland said. "There's been a lot of shootings recently. It's sort of scary, so you have to watch your back."
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CBS2 asked the NYPD about assaults on the subway. The numbers show assaults are up nearly 10 percent and there have been more than 300 so far this year.
The victim, who was still in the hospital Thursday morning, is expected to survive his injuries.
Anyone with information about the attack 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 or by texting their tips to 274637 (CRIMES) then enter TIP577. All calls are strictly confidential.
