The bloody attack occurred on the night of July 28 in the Jamaica-Van Wyck subway station and was prevented by two Venezuelans who lived in a nearby migrant shelter.
Photo via Wikimedia
A Bronx panhandler has been indicted by a Queens grand jury on attempted murder charges for the stabbing death of a 23-year-old woman who was attacked as she exited the Jamaica-Van Wyck subway station in Richmond Hill last month.
Two Good Samaritans from Venezuelawho live with their families in a nearby migrant shelter, rushed to her aid, intervened and held the perpetrator until the police arrived.
Randol Contreras, 24, of 241st Street in the Bronx, was arraigned in Queens Supreme Court on Wednesday on nine counts of attempted murder, multiple assaults and illegal possession of a firearm, a day after the New York Police Department honored the migrants who prevented the bloody attack.
According to the indictment, the 23-year-old victim exited the escalator to the mezzanine at approximately 8:23 p.m. on July 28 and walked toward the exit of the Jamaica-Van Wyck subway station. Contreras approached the victim with a knife in his hand and demanded money. The woman said she did not have one and tried to give her purse to Contreras, who pushed her into a corner next to the escalator and stabbed her three times in the right side of her torso and then in the stomach. He also injured her face.
One of the Good Samaritans came up the escalator, saw the stabbing, and told his own son to run away before yelling at Contreras to stop. Contreras turned his attention to the witness and then ran toward the turnstile. The witness and another migrant followed Contreras out of the subway station and told him to stop. They jumped him until 102nd Precinct police arrived in Richmond Hill and took Contreras into custody.
Back at the subway station, another man saw that the victim was bleeding profusely and called 911. He then escorted the woman out of the subway station and took her to the nearby emergency room at Jamaica Hospital Medical Center. A knife and the vest Contreras was wearing were discovered in the trash.
“We have secured a grand jury indictment against Randol Contreras for attempted murder,” said Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz. “A young woman was seriously injured in this attack as she exited the subway station. The defendant allegedly asked the victim for money and then stabbed her multiple times in the upper body, causing a perforated liver and cuts to her face.”
Queens State Supreme Court Judge Toni Cimino remanded Contreras in custody and ordered him to appear in court again on September 30. If convicted, he faces 25 years in prison.
“My thanks go to the courageous witnesses who tried to stop the attack, helped the victim and then detained the defendant until the police arrived,” Katz said.
On Tuesday, NYPD Transit Chief Michael Kemper honored Venezuelan Good Samaritans Alexander Oswaldo Robles Lino and Josnan Alberto Palacios in front of their families at One Police Plaza. Kemper recognized them as heroes and presented them with awards.
Kemper also addressed the negative press some Venezuelan asylum seekers have received over the past two years due to gang violence related to the refugee crisis.
“When you’re dealing with hundreds of thousands of people, unfortunately there are going to be some people, a small percentage, who are not here for the right reasons,” Kemper said. “That’s not the norm, that’s the norm, and that’s why we’re happy to recognize what they did and what they’ve done.”
After receiving his award, Palacios told the New York Metro with the help of a translator that he hopes his actions will help change attitudes toward migrants, particularly those seeking asylum in the United States from his native Venezuela.
“Now it’s clear that there are good people with good intentions and good hearts,” Palacios said. “Ultimately, this has to come to light so that everyone can see that everyone is equal.”
Additional reporting by Dean Moses
