A crazed suspect randomly punched a nine-year-old girl in the face in New York City’s Grand Central Terminal.
Jose Carlos Zarzuela, 30, was arrested on Saturday after he punched the unidentified girl inside the terminal’s dining area around 11.49am, police said.
Zarzuela, a repeat offender who was recently released for a similar crime, allegedly approached the girl as she stood near her mother before he hit her in the face without warning, according to the MTA Police Department.
The girl suffered pain and dizziness after the attack and was taken to NYU Langone-Tisch Hospital. She is expected to make a full recovery.
‘It doesn’t make any sense that this guy– who recently was released after being charged with randomly punching someone else and breaking that victim’s nose– should be back in a public space where he can attack others, especially children,’ MTA Communications Director Tim Minton told amNewYork Metro.
Jose Carlos Zarzuela, 30, was arrested on Saturday after he punched a nine-year-old girl in the face around 11.49am in Grand Central Terminal’s dining area, police said
Zarzuela is seen wandering in surveillance footage outside of a Shake Shack in the terminal’s dining area
The girl suffered pain and dizziness after the attack and was taken to NYU Langone-Tisch Hospital. She is expected to make a full recovery
After he punched the child, Zarzuela fled the scene before he was found at the Lexington Avenue/125th Street station.
Surveillance footage caught Zarzuela near a Shake Shack in the food court, wandering in the station, and running out onto the street after the attack.
He was arrested by NYPD Transit Bureau officers around 10.20pm and told police that he lived at a homeless shelter nearby.
He was seen in photos being escorted in handcuffs by MTA Police Detectives with multiple stains on his gray crewneck sweatshirt.
He donned black pants and had a blank look on his face as the officers walked him out of Grand Central Terminal.
Zarzuela was charged with aggravated assault of a victim under 11, second-degree assault, third-degree assault and attempted assault.
This was not Zarzuela’s first run-in with the law, as sources close to the investigation told amNew York Metro that he was arrested eight other times.
After he punched the child, Zarzuela fled the scene before he was found at the Lexington Avenue/125th Street station
He was arrested by NYPD Transit Bureau officers around 10.20pm and told police that he lived at a homeless shelter nearby
He was seen in photos being escorted in handcuffs by MTA Police Detectives with multiple stains on his gray crewneck sweatshir
On April 4, Zarzuela assaulted a 54-year-old woman at the Grand Central Terminal near Lexington Avenue. Days later he was released from custody without bail
On April 4, Zarzuela assaulted a 54-year-old woman at the Grand Central Terminal near Lexington Avenue, police said.
During that encounter, the suspect allegedly punched the woman in the face in a random attack and broke her nose, MTA Police sources said.
He was arrested and charged with second-degree felony assault, but his charge was later decreased to third-degree misdemeanor assault after he appeared in court, records revealed.
Prosecutors first requested that he remain in jail on a $10,000 bail, which was soon downgraded to $2,500.
According to court records, days after his hearing, Judge Laurie Peterson ordered he be released from custody without bail.
‘The people responsible for the criminal justice system need to learn from this episode before more innocent people become victims,’ Minton said.
Last week, police released surveillance footage of a suspect that allegedly punched a 23-year-old woman on March 20 as she walked past a McDonald’s on 6th Avenue in Chelsea around 10am
This year alone, there have been 465 reported felony assaults in the Big Apple, according to crime statistics.
In recent weeks, multiple women were randomly punched in the face by men, following a trend line of seemingly isolated incidents of violence in the city.
Last week, police released surveillance footage of a suspect who allegedly punched a 23-year-old woman on March 20 as she walked past a McDonald’s on 6th Avenue in Chelsea around 10am.
She was inspected by medical professionals for a nose injury and filed a report with authorities on the same day.
The suspect, a man in dark pants, a light T-shirt and what looks like a light blue overcoat or unbuttoned dress shirt, was caught on surveillance camera jogging away after the attack.
