A 61-year-old man faces a second-degree murder charge after allegedly pushing a woman in front of an oncoming train.
Around 9:30 a.m. on Saturday, January 15, 40-year-old Michelle Alyssa Go was waiting for a train at a Manhattan subway station at Broadway and 42nd Street when a man shoved her onto the tracks in front of the approaching train.
When officers responded to the incident, they found Go underneath the train. EMS responders pronounced her dead at the scene. The New York Times reported that after he pushed the victim, the suspect rode a train to Lower Manhattan and then turned himself over to police at the Canal Street station.
According to New York police officials, the suspect, Simon Martial, is allegedly homeless and has a criminal background and a history of mental illness. Jason Wilcox, Assistant Chief of Police, said of Martial: “He does have, in the past, three emotionally disturbed encounters with us that we have documented.” Wilcox also confirmed that Martial had served two prison sentences, including one for attempted robbery.
Police reported that an eyewitness at the scene claimed that she felt threatened by Martial when he came too close to her, and she had a gut feeling that something wasn’t right or that he might push her onto the tracks. As she backed away, she allegedly witnessed Go becoming the victim of what she feared.
At the press conference, Police Commissioner Keechant Sewell stated that there was no known motive behind the incident and said they believe Go did not have any interaction with Martial prior to being pushed. Sewell described the situation as a “senseless, absolutely senseless, act of violence.”
Mayor Eric Adams called on government officials to put measures in place to better assist individuals with mental health issues and reiterated the need to strengthen the safety of the subway system.
The investigation is ongoing, and law enforcement officials will be reviewing the subway video footage of the incident.
