12/3/2012
By Tim Herrera and Ivan Pereira
As horrified straphangers looked on, an 58-year-old man was struck and killed by a subway train yesterday after he was shoved onto the tracks during an altercation with another man who was still on the run as of press time, according to the NYPD.
Han Ki-Suck, of Queens, was hit by a train on the N/Q/R line at the 49th Street station around 12:30 p.m., after the allegedly emotionally disturbed man shovedhim into the well, reports said.
The man tried crawling back onto the platform and screamed at the subway to stop, but by then it was too late and he was smashed between the train and the platform, according to officials.
“He gets into an argument and is pushing and shoving, and at least one witness felt that the aggressor was emotionally disturbed,” said NYPD spokesman Paul Browne, according to The New York Times.
“As he attempted to climb out of the well, he was struck by the train and got wedged between the platform and the train car,” Browne said.
He added that the two men “exchanged words,” after which the attacker shoved the victim down onto the tracks. He was taken to St. Luke’s Hospital in critical condition, where he died, according to the MTA.
Police shut down the station as they investigated the scene and spoke with witnesses, some of whom they removed by van for interviews.
Patrick Gomez, 37, of New Jersey, was on the platform when the argument happened, and said he heard a loud “thud” when the victim fell down onto the tracks.
“It was a lot of confusion. It was a lot of people getting scared,” Gomez told amNewYork. “A fight between a kid and man in his 60s is just crazy.”
Police are now on the hunt for the attacker, who reportedly fled from the subway station after the scuffle. Police described him as being in his mid-30s, about 240 pounds with short dreadlocks, and wearing a knit cap and a down coat.
