EVG file photo
Last Thursday, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg, Jr., announced the indictment of 24-year-old Tylek McPherson for allegedly slashing a 68-year-old man with a butcher's knife near Astor Place.
According to court documents, the attack occurred around 2:40 a.m. on Oct. 1, 2024, near Astor Place and Eighth Street. McPherson is accused of approaching the victim at random and slashing him in the face and hand before fleeing. The two reportedly did not know each other.
Police responded to multiple 911 calls about a man with a weapon and later spotted McPherson, who matched the description, entering the Union Square subway station. Officers took the suspect into custody there.
The victim, who had collapsed near 20th Street and Fifth Avenue, was found bleeding heavily and transported to the hospital, where he received stitches, according to the DA's office.
McPherson has been charged with two counts of attempted assault in the first degree, one count of assault in the second degree, and one count of criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree.
Bragg said his office remains focused on "preventing and addressing stranger assaults" and encouraged victims of violence to seek support from the DA's trained counselors.
This was the second of two high-profile random slashings on Union Square last year.
On June 6, 2024, a 30-year-old man was slashed with an unknown object in the back of the neck at 5:30 p.m. on the busy plaza that houses the Cube and the food and beverage kiosk. Police later arrested the suspect, said to be a 35-year-old homeless man.
