Man, 68, punched in face on NY subway was victim of anti-Asian hate, witness says

Angrej Singh and Wes Parnell, New York Daily News
·3 min read

NEW YORK — A 68-year-old man punched in the face by a stranger on a Tribeca subway train, leaving him in critical condition, was the latest victim of anti-Asian hate, a good Samaritan who helped the victim told the New York Daily News.

The victim was minding his business riding an uptown No. 1 train when the assailant, sporting a fedora, black leather jacket, pink hoodie and an elaborate gold necklace, boarded the train at the Franklin Street stop about 2:40 p.m. Friday, cops said.

“You motherf---ing Asian,” the man yelled, according to witness George Okrepkie.

Without warning, the 6-foot-2 attacker walloped the victim in the face leaving him covered in blood that dripped down his jacket. The attacker threw what appeared to be a balled up newspaper before punching the victim, Okrepkie said.

“I was in a state of shock,” said Okrepkie, 55, the CEO of AX Trading, who happened to be sitting across from the victim in the nearly empty subway car. “It’s an incredibly disgusting attack on an Asian American.

“I tried to go after the assailant but he took off,” Okrepkie said. “I went back to the elderly gentleman, took off my scarf and wrapped it around him, waiting for the EMT and NYPD to show up.”

Medics rushed the victim to New York-Presbyterian Lower Manhattan, where he was in critical but stable condition, police said.

Family members told NBC New York he is Sri Lanken. Police have not yet designated the attack a hate crime.

“I took photos of the incident to show that crimes keep happening in NYC subways week after week,” Okrepkie said. “I just had lunch with a friend of mine, who is Asian American, and it’s brutal to see the rise in crimes against Asian Americans.”

The assailant fled the train but not before surveillance cameras captured him walking through the station looking at his cellphone.

Police released images of the suspect Sunday and asked the public’s help identifying him and tracking him down. He is believed to be about 30.

Okrepkie says he will be back on the train Monday.

“If I saw this happen again, I would do the right thing and help again,” he said.

Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at (800) 577-TIPS. All calls will be kept confidential.

The attack comes as violence has picked up in the underground, despite a roughly 75% drop in ridership since the pandemic. All while crimes and attacks against Asian Americans have increased as well.

Noel Quintana, a Filipino American, was slashed across the face in an unprovoked attack on an L train while on his way to work on Feb. 3. Quintana, who has stitch marks from one side of his face to the other, has since spoken up and petitioned against the disturbing trend of Asian American hate crimes in NYC.

On Friday, a man slashed a victim in the face on a Bronx train after getting in an argument. The assailant pulled out a box cutter as the train pulled into the Cypress Avenue station around 9:30 p.m. and sliced him above the lip, cops said.

Earlier Friday, a 37-year-old man was stabbed in the arm and the leg in an unprovoked attack onboard a Brooklyn No. 4 train rumbling into the Nevins Street station around 12:10 a.m., cops said.

About 500 additional police officers were deployed in February into the transit system to deal with the alarming amount of attacks.