Police from the 102nd Precinct in Richmond Hill and Transit District 20 are looking for a suspect who allegedly punched out a J train rider during an attempted robbery during the morning rush on Thursday, May 22.
The 26-year-old victim was on the Manhattan-bound platform at the 111th Street subway station above Jamaica Avenue at around 7:40 a.m. when he was approached by a stranger who punched him repeatedly in the face, demanding money, police said Tuesday.
The victim stood his ground, and no money or personal property was taken as the perpetrator stormed off, exiting the station in an unknown direction.
The NYPD released surveillance images of the suspect and described him as having a dark complexion with a goatee. He was last seen wearing a blue jacket over a black hooded sweatshirt, gray sweatpants, and a black backpack.
Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website at crimestoppers.nypdonline.org or on X (the platform formerly known as Twitter) @NYPDTips. All calls and messages are confidential.
Through May 25, the 102nd Precinct has reported 113 felony assaults so far in 2025, 28 fewer than the 141 reported at the same point last year, a decline of 19.9%, according to the most recent CompStat report. The precinct also reported four transit crimes so far this year, the same number reported at the same point in 2024, according to CompStat.
