New York elderly man Rodney Thomas was rushed to Mount Sinai Medical Center on Tuesday after an unprovoked attacker shoved him onto the subway tracks at the 47th–50th Streets–Rockefeller Center.

The assault happened around  3:50 a.m on Tuesday, along the southbound B/D/F/M platform inside the busy Midtown transit hub. According to the New York City Police Department (NYPD) officials, the suspect approached the victim from behind without warning or any sort of prior conversation before pushing him off the platform ledge.

The man got back onto the platform by himself, although he had a dislocated shoulder. After which, he was taken to the medical center, where they announced that Thomas was stable. The shover was identified as Francisco Garcia, a 40-year-old man from Queens. He doesn’t have any previous criminal records in New York. 

He was arrested at the scene and charged with assault and reckless endangerment.  After the incident, Thomas spoke to the Daily News to opine on the incident. 

He said:

“I was leaning on the pole and somebody came up behind me and pushed.”

— Rodney Thomas (72-year-old musician), Nydailynews

He further said, “He must have thought I was somebody else or whatever but it doesn’t make no difference. He could have killed me. He yelled something and pushed me off.”

He concluded, saying, “You got to use common sense. You’re gonna lay there and let a train come run you over — or you get yourself up. I knew there were steps at the end of the platform.”

The incident follows a persistent series of subway platform assaults across Manhattan. The August 2026 shoving follows a similar string of incidents that happened in 2026. In March, a man shoved two strangers, including an 83-year-old veteran, onto the tracks at Lexington Avenue and 63rd Street, and the other man was left brain-dead. 

 

Aaron Kareem, a US Army soldier, was pushed on the Manhattan subway when he was on his way to his dad’s funeral. 

The suspect shoved him onto the track after the train pulled away. This happened after the suspect followed Watson off the Southbound E train at West Fourth Street in Greenwich Village. 

The suspect is still on the run, and no arrest has been made as the case is still under investigation. 

Although subway crimes are not uncommon, through Aug. 9, there are 406 felony assaults in the subway. It’s up 9% from 371 for the same time last year.

Furthermore, in 2026, subway robberies are up 18%, while felony assaults are down 6% and major transit crime is nearly flat. This highlights how certain crime categories are worsening. 

Disclaimer: Inquisitr could not independently confirm the facts of this incident and is reporting based on the information available.