Transit cops arrested a felon Thursday who allegedly punched a mother in the head while she was walking inside a Queens subway station on Monday carrying her infant son, leaving both with injuries.
According to police, the assault took place on Feb. 17 at approximately 2:10 p.m. inside the Queens Boulevard and 71st Avenue station in Forest Hills. The victim, a 38-year-old woman, was walking inside the station while holding her one-year-old son when she was approached by the suspect, who allegedly punched her without warning across the side of her head and ear. As the victim fell, the tot’s head hit the wall — leaving both mother and child injured.
The suspect, who was later identified as Shane Harrison, 29, fled the scene.
Detectives were on the lookout for the suspect throughout the week. On Thursday morning at around 4:40 a.m., during the department’s newly executed surge of cops on every overnight train, two officers aboard a northbound F train recognized Harrison at the 179 Street station sitting on a seat. They were able to apprehend him and take him into custody without incident. He has been charged with reckless endangerment and two counts of assault.
Police sources report that Harrison listed his address as 400 East 30th St., which is also known as the Bellevue men’s shelter in Kips Bay. It was also revealed that this is not the first time he has been cuffed for an unprovoked assault in the city’s subway system.
Cops say on Nov. 23, 2023, at the Bay Parkway station in Brooklyn, Harrison approached a 70-year-old man who was sitting on a bench and struck him with a closed fist. The victim suffered minor injuries. Harrison was arrested for this crime on May 10, 2024, and was charged with two felonies.
The overnight NYPD initiative began in January after Gov. Kathy Hochul and Mayor Eric Adams fast-tracked the public safety push, which saw hundreds more officers added to the subways in a partial operation aimed at reducing crime and making riders feel safer overnight. Police report that the operation has yielded many arrests.
