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Man arrested after kicking elderly woman on subway as bystanders shot video

Posted at 6:45 AM, Mar 24, 2019
and last updated 2019-03-24 06:45:00-04

A man who was filmed kicking a 78-year-old woman repeatedly on the subway in New York has been arrested and charged with assault, police said.

Video of the attack on a Bronx subway car has been widely shared online. It showed a tall man in glasses, a dark jacket and a knit cap forcefully kicking the woman while she was aboard a train. Bystanders recording video of the attack yelled “ooohh, ahhhh, naahh” as the man hit the woman, but they did not intervene to stop him. It’s unclear what happened before the attack or whether the two know each other.

After the attack, the woman appeared to wipe away tears as she quietly sat in a corner with cell phone cameras pointed at her.

  • Warning: Video of the attack, seen below, may be difficult to watch for some viewers.

As the man walked past bystanders and off the train, he shouted "WorldStar that!" in reference to a popular site that posts videos of people involved in altercations, among other things.

Police identified the suspect as Marc Gomez, 36, of Yonkers. He was arrested Saturday in Manhattan and charged with multiple counts of assault and harassment,the NYPD said in a statement.

The attack happened on March 10, but the video did not surface until recently. After the incident, the woman rode the train one more northbound stop and was met by EMS when she exited the train, the NYPD said in a statement. It said she suffered from bleeding and swelling with cuts to the face.

She was treated and released from the hospital and is getting the care, advocacy and support she needs, NYPD Chief of Detectives Dermot F. Shea said.