Police arrest man in attempted rape of woman, 18, aboard NYC subway

Man arrested for subway attack

Isaiah Benjamin has been arrested for the incident on a 2 train in New York City.

NEW YORK - The New York City Police Department has announced they have arrested the man they say attempted to rape an 18-year-old woman aboard a subway train on the Upper West Side of Manhattan before a good Samaritan intervened.

The suspect, who police say has 11 prior arrests and an active bench warrant now faces charges of attempted rape.

The alleged incident happened Sunday just before 10 p.m.

Photo credit: NYPD

Police say the victim was followed by the suspect onto a southbound '2' train leaving the 125th Street subway station in Harlem. That's when police say the suspect exposed himself and attempted to pull the victim's pants down while the train was approaching the 72nd Street subway station.

A Good Samaritan intervened and helped the victim flee to another train car to safety. The suspect remained on the train and detrained at the 42nd Street subway station, where he fled, police say.

The victim traveled by private means to NYC Health & Hospitals/Kings County for treatment and evaluation.

The suspect is described as an adult male last seen wearing dark clothing and red sneakers, and carrying a McDonald’s food bag and beverage.

Photo credit: NYPD

It comes following a violent Christmas last month in the subway system, where there were at least four separate incidents.

In one incident, a 37-year-old MTA worker was pepper sprayed through a train window as she was operating a train. The northbound 2 train was pulling into the 135th St. and Lenox Ave. Station at around 3 a.m. when the attack occurred. She was treated in the station and was taken to Harlem Hospital to be checked out. The attacker took off and was not caught.

Violent Christmas in New York City subway

A stabbing, pepper spray attack, and a robbery all took place on Christmas day in the New York City subway system.

Another incident took place just before noon on a northbound 6 train as it approached the 33rd St. Station in Manhattan. Two men got into an argument. One of them pulled out a knife and stabbed the other man in the torso. They both got off the train at the station and the attacker ran off. EMS took the victim to Bellevue Hospital in stable condition.

Another person was the victim of an armed robbery in a subway station. It happened around 9:30 a.m. on an R train platform of the 25th St. Station in the Gowanus section of Brooklyn. A 31-year-old man and 30-year-old woman, believed to be tourists, were approached and robbed by a man who then jumped on a train and took off. The victim was not hurt.

There were also two deaths in the subway system on Christmas.

In one incident a 52-year-old man, believed to be homeless, was found dead on an L train at the last stop at Rockaway Parkway in East New York, Brooklyn. It was believed to be a medical issue and not criminal in nature. Also, a man was hit and killed by an F train just before midnight. The man was believed to have dropped something onto the tracks at a Jackson Heights, Queens subway station and had hopped down to retrieve it when the train was pulling into the station.