Two men have been arrested and charged after a good Samaritan was stabbed on a Manhattan bus, Eyewitness News reported. The 73-year-old man had stepped in to protect a pregnant woman aboard an MTA bus on the Upper West Side, and what began as a good deed ended with him being knifed.
The confrontation started over a simple matter of respect. The man saw another passenger push his way past the pregnant woman, knocking into her, and told him to show the lady some respect because she was pregnant, a remark that did not sit well with the other rider.
The situation quickly turned into something far more dangerous. On June 5th, during what the victim described as a lesson in manners, a second man came from the back of the bus to gang up on him, and the dispute escalated into a physical struggle.
The 73-year-old was an unlikely target for the pair. He had boarded the bus tired, lugging groceries and simply hoping to get home to cook his family a steak dinner, but as a former football player, club bouncer and correction officer he was able to hold his own as the punches came.
The attack reached its most serious point as the bus stopped. The two men tried to drag him off, and he wrestled them off at Broadway, where police say the pair stabbed him in the shoulder. Tough as he is, he said he did not even realise he had been stabbed until he saw the blood.
Investigators have since identified and arrested the two suspects. Police say Jaden Marrero, 24, and Donzel Mitchell, 19, are now under arrest and charged with assault and criminal possession of a weapon in connection with the attack.
The victim, who has since been identified as Robert Hunter and goes by Tony, has played down any talk of heroism. He said he is not a hero, just someone who tried to do the right thing, adding that it did not have to be that pregnant woman, it could have been anyone who needed someone to look out for them.