A shoeless maniac randomly attacked a number of strangers and even cops in an unhinged Wednesday morning spree in Chelsea – leaving one sufferer lamenting to The Put up “this shouldn’t be occurring.”
The unhinged man allegedly punched photographer and artist Jose Castillo, 38, at West twenty sixth Avenue and Seventh Avenue round 9:20 a.m., police stated.
Castillo, a New Yorker of 12 years who has a studio in SoHo, was strolling to choose up provides in Chelsea when he strolled previous a person who had been asking folks for cash on the road.
Out of nowhere, that man turned violent, Castillo stated.
“I felt [like I was] punched within the face, and it knocked me to the bottom,” he stated. “A pair people who have been round got here by to see if I used to be OK and helped me up. I wasn’t knocked out, however I used to be knocked all the way down to the ground by the punch.”
“And as I used to be getting up, to only you recognize, mud it off and carry on strolling as a result of it’s New York, one of many people who was serving to me stated like, ‘You’re bleeding in your face,’ and she or he stated, ‘It is best to name the cops,’” Castillo added.
As he dialed 911, he regarded again to see if the madman was nonetheless in sight – and caught him punching a teen lady, a vacationer who was visiting the town together with her mother.
“I noticed it from possibly like half a block away as I used to be strolling over and he hit her within the face too,” Castillo stated. “However by the point I reached them, the younger lady was inconsolable. She was crying as a result of she had simply been attacked in the course of the road.
“After I went over and approached them, and I used to be like, ‘Hey, did he assault you too?’, and so they have been like, ‘Yeah, he simply punched her too,’ and by then I used to be already on the road with 911 and I used to be telling them what was occurring.”
Each mother and daughter, who have been “fairly shaken up,” have been not on the scene by the point cops arrived.
“I assume that is gonna be their New York story, you recognize,” Castillo stated.
As Castillo was on the cellphone with the dispatcher, he stated he witnessed the crazed man assault one other teenager.
“He obtained as much as these younger children that regarded like they have been in center college and after they didn’t pay any consideration to him, he smacked certainly one of them behind the top,” he stated. “I used to be telling all of this to the dispatcher and letting them know that they need to get there quick, as a result of this man was, you recognize, attacking folks randomly.”
Because the officers approached, the road menace turned “combative” and turned on them too — punching a 30-year-old male officer within the face, and spitting on a 30-year-old feminine cop, authorities stated.
One other officer, 53, additionally damage his shoulder whereas making an attempt to take the assailant into custody, police stated.
“As they get near him, this man simply begins swinging, and hits one of many officers on the best facet of his face, and so they tried to include him,” Castillo stated. “You realize, that man wasn’t that tall, he was about 5-foot-7, however he was actually sturdy for somebody that was that skinny.
“It was simply havoc,” the sufferer recalled. “The cops tried to…restrain him and so they have been having points with that. Two different cops got here by and helped … .I do know that he was spitting at officers on the station and within the automobile.”
Castillo was handled on the scene for minor accidents, however stated he thinks he must get checked out additional.
“Proper now, I’m going to get an X-ray of my face as a result of…. I’ve ache, like I feel that he moved certainly one of my tooth behind my mouth,” he stated.
The 2 male officers have been hospitalized in secure situation, in response to cops.
In the meantime, the attacker — who is taken into account an emotionally disturbed individual — was taken to Bellevue Hospital for an analysis, police stated.
He was taken into police custody with expenses pending. His identify was not instantly recognized and police have been contemplating him a “John Doe.”
He wore solely socks however no sneakers throughout the string of assaults, and seemed to be in his mid-40s, Castillo stated.
“Principally he was simply silent and threatening, getting in folks’s faces,” he recalled. “You realize, this man was critical. I’ve been residing right here for 12 years, and I’ve seen some people who have been appearing slightly deranged, however this man positively was….I feel that he wanted some assist.”
In the meantime, Castillo stated that assaults like these “shouldn’t be occurring.”
“There are options that might be put in place to assist these folks out,” he stated. “The police response was fast, they have been very useful. I feel that we needs to be grateful that we dwell in a metropolis that has such a powerful police drive that’s there for us.”
