A man was stabbed in the back without warning on a Manhattan street Wednesday, according to police reports. The victim, originally from Turkey, expressed disbelief at the violence he had encountered.
While on his way to the Port Authority bus terminal after work, the 46-year-old immigrant from New Jersey was attacked at the corner of Eighth Avenue and West 49th Street in Hell’s Kitchen around 8:45 p.m. Tuesday.
“He just came and hit me,” the still-hospitalized victim said in a phone interview. “My back hurt. It was a homeless guy. He hit me, and I just crossed the street. I tried to get away, but when I saw the blood, I called 911 right away.”
The injured man was quickly taken to Bellevue Hospital, where he underwent surgery shortly after midnight. Fortunately, the knife wound affected only his muscles and did not damage any major organs like his lungs or liver.
The assailant remains unidentified and was described as appearing “fairly calm” while leaving the scene.
“I was lying there watching him,” the victim recounted. “It felt surreal.”
Having lived in the city for two decades, the victim now feels uneasy about safety on the streets and issued a caution to others. “This could happen to anyone. I just walked through it,” he remarked, adding, “I lived in Istanbul and Izmir; I never encountered anything like this. It’s just crazy.”
The suspect is described as a dark-skinned individual, about 6 feet tall, last seen wearing a beige shirt, black pants, and white sneakers.
As of Wednesday, police were still searching for the attacker.
The stabbing follows another unprovoked attack that occurred further downtown on Monday morning, where Demitri Marshall, a 32-year-old ex-convict, allegedly slashed a 27-year-old man near the East Broadway subway station.
