Search On For Assailant Who Attacked Man With Syringe In East Harlem Subway Station
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- A suspect was on the run late Monday after another random attack on the subway.
As CBS's Hazel Sanchez reported, the weapon that was used in the East Harlem attack this past weekend made the incident even more troubling.
Police said just after 9 a.m. Sunday, a 30-year-old man was randomly stabbed in the back with a syringe as he headed into the 125th Street station at Lexington Avenue, which serves the No. 4, 5 and 6 trains.
One commuter said it does not surprise him to hear about such a horrific attack.
"Not in the last few years," the commuter said, "because of the drug activity and all – a lot of people going down."
Police said the victim was walking down the stairs when the suspect, who was acting erratically, approached asking him to hand over a bracelet he was wearing. When the victim refused, police said the suspect stabbed him with the syringe and ran off.
"Well I mean, in this area, you have methadone clinics and stuff like that, so if you have those type of people in the area, things are bound to happen," said Terrance Tucker of Harlem.
Despite the questionable characters who loiter on 125th Street and Lexington Avenue, some locals said such a crime is still surprising. It makes many uneasy traveling alone at any time.
"Scary -- there's no safety now in this world anywhere you go," said commuter Matty Nije. "People just have to watch their backs when you go."
Police said the victim of the attack was a medical student at Bronx-Lebanon Hospital Center. He actually went to church after the incident, and the hospital where he was treated and released.