Waheed Foster, 41, has been indicted by a Queens County grand jury on attempted murder and assault charges after brutally attacking a woman exiting the subway at the Howard Beach/JFK Airport station, according to Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz.
According to the charges, on Sept. 20, between 5:15 and 5:45 a.m., the defendant struck the victim, Elizabeth Gomes, 33, on the head with a hard object as she exited the subway station. When Gomes attempted to flee, surveillance video showed Foster grabbing the victim and throwing her to the floor. The defendant then kicked Gomes several times in the face and body.
Katz said a bystander attempted to intervene, but Foster chased him away and continued to attack the victim. Eventually, Foster walked away from the victim, leaving her on the floor in a pool of blood.
“We have had enough,” Katz said. “There are basic rights that New Yorkers should have in this city, and one of them is the right to safety when commuting to work, using the subway to take our children to school, and knowing we can safely come home to our families. In Queens, my Office will not tolerate those who choose to rob us of these freedoms. As alleged, the defendant brutally attacked this victim, was interrupted by a good Samaritan trying to intervene, and then continued the attack relentlessly. In addition to assault in the first degree, my office has indicted this defendant on attempted murder charges.”
Gomes was taken to a local Queens hospital where she underwent emergency eye surgery to repair her ruptured right globe. According to the DA, she has lost vision in one eye.
Foster, if convicted, faces up to 25 years in prison.
According to reports, Foster was arrested for beating his 82-year-old foster grandmother to death at the age of 14. He had also been arrested for allegedly stabbing his 21-year-old sister with a screwdriver. He was on parole for attacking workers at the Creedmore Psychiatric Center at the time of the attack on Gomes.
