Police arrest man after 69-year-old pushed down subway stairs in Queens, suffers broken knee

LONG ISLAND CITY, Queens (WABC) -- Police have arrested and charged a suspect in connection with pushing a 69-year-old man down a set of stairs at a subway stop in Queens.

Police arrested 44-year-old Jerome Blakely on Monday evening, and charged him with assault.

Authorities say the victim was pushed inside the 36th Street M/R station in Long Island City on Wednesday. He fractured his knee in the fall and was taken to Mt. Sinai Hospital, where he is in stable condition.

There were no words exchanged between the victim and the suspect before the attack happened, investigators say. The suspect then fled the station to the street.

It is not yet clear what motivated the attack.

That 69-year-old victim told Eyewitness News he's angry about this attack and he wants police to catch this guy before he does the same thing to someone else.

"That's crazy," subway rider Tiara Perry said. "I know people have older parents, and that's ridiculous. That's sad."