NYPD: Teen blinded in left eye by scissor-wielding man on subway
NEW YORK -- A teenager lost sight in one eye after he was stabbed on the subway.
CBS2's Natalie Duddridge spoke with the victim Thursday at Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital in Washington Heights as police continue to search for the suspect.
Chris Anguisaca, 19, underwent multiple surgical procedures and said he's grateful to be alive.
"This happened, it just changed my life forever," Anguisaca said.
Anguisaca is still coming to terms with being blind in his left eye. Police said he was attacked by a man with a pair of scissors while riding the A train at around 6 a.m. back on Feb. 14.
"The blade, it went so deep that it cut the nerve of my eye," Anguisaca said. "I basically can't see no more from this eye."
Anguisaca said he was on his way home from work when a man, who appeared to be homeless, approached and said, "Why are you talking about me?"
"He comes at me specifically, calling me racial slurs and everything," Anguisaca told CBS2. "Then he stands up, coming closer to me, so then I try to defend myself, and then we get into this altercation and then he starts, at the end he just stabbed me in the eye."
"My heart was broken and then, I was crying a lot," said Anguisaca's mother Blanca Buestan. "This is not easy for a mother to see that somebody do that. At the same time, I was grateful because he's still alive."
The attack happened a week before Mayor Eric Adams rolled out a safety plan focused on several subway lines, including the A. So far, the city says 30 teams of police and mental health professionals have engaged with at least 100 people and tried to move them to homeless shelters.
"I think there should be more police dealing with this homelessness," Anguisaca said.
"No more open drug use. No more smoking," said MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber. "People who are abusive to our staff and other riders, people who are yelling and ranting, we want them to get the help that they need."
Thursday, the MTA discussed other new safety plans. Platform doors to prevent people from jumping (or being pushed) onto tracks are being tested at three stations. The transit authority is also adding track "intrusion detection," like lasers and cameras.
Anguisaca's family started a GoFundMe page that has reached $9,000 to help pay for his surgeries. The family is also applying to the city's compensation fund for crime victims.
Anguisaca said he doesn't feel safe riding the subway again, but he may not have a choice when he's ready to go back to work.