A group of teenagers on a down town Washington, D.C., train brutally attacked a random man Monday night during the evening rush hour after one of them tried to steal the man’s bag.
The brutal assault occurred around 5:30 P.M. on a red line train near Union Station, when the working people of D.C. were trying to get home to their families, according to a Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) spokeswoman.
Witnesses on the scene identified the assailants as two black males, approximately 6’2″ in height, one possibly wearing camouflage pants. Authorities say they stopped three black males from fleeing the scene in the belief they might have known the assailants.
Kristin Smyth, a passenger aboard the train, told The Washington Post a group of teenagers were daring each other to rob the man before they tried to rob him.
“It started with two of the kids, two boys, egging each other on,” she told the Post. “‘You bet I won’t do it, you bet I won’t do it.’”
After being dared, one member of the pack of D.C. youths approached the man and demanded he hand over his bag. When the man did not comply, the youth began beating him. (RELATED: Pack-Style Robberies Are The Newest Threat On DC Streets)
The man sat calmly while the teenager pummeled him for about 30 seconds, according to the Post, before he got up and tried to walk away. At that point, another youth joined in on the beating and began to punch the man in the face.
The man was knocked out cold. He later got up, face bloodied, and asked “Did I do something wrong? What happened?”
When the train arrived at the next station, Metro Transit Police officers stopped three juveniles who ran off the train, but couldn’t identify them as the teens involved, so they were set free.
“The investigation is ongoing and will include a review of video surveillance to identify the suspect or suspects,” WMATA spokeswoman Sherri Ly said.
The man’s wife met him at the station platform, and an ambulance arrived and transported him to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, according to Ly. (RELATED: Marauding Teenagers Attack Woman And Baby In DC’s Poshest Neighborhood)
“Any crime is tragic, but crime committed on public transportation is particularly troubling,” said Mike Czin, the mayor’s spokesman. “That’s why in August, the Mayor proposed increasing penalties for crimes committed in our public transit system as part of her Safer, Stronger legislative package.”
At the same Metro station July 4, a man was stabbed nearly 40 times after another teenager tried to steal his cell phone.
Kevin Sutherland was on his way down town to meet friends for an Independence Day celebration when Jasper Spires tried to steal his cell phone. The two tussled before Spires started punching Sutherland in the face.
The men fell to the ground, and while on the ground, Spires pulled out a knife and stabbed Sutherland repeatedly.
At that point, Spires reportedly grabbed the cellphone, which had fallen on to the floor, and smashed it on Sutherland’s lifeless body before repeatedly kicking him in the head.
When he was done, Spires turned his attention to the rest of the passengers on the crowded train car. He stormed toward one witness and demanded they hand over their money.
Police arrested Spires and charged him with murder, a few days later, following a citywide manhunt.
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