NYC subway rider had ‘flat smirk’ before stabbing train operator, victim says

CROWN HEIGHTS, Brooklyn (PIX11) – A subway rider in New York City approached an MTA train operator with a “flat smirk” on his face, pulled out a big knife, and stabbed the worker repeatedly on Tuesday, the victim said.

The MTA train operator recounted the horrific incident that left him fighting for his life at the Crown Heights–Utica Avenue station in Brooklyn around 10:50 a.m.

The victim, Myran Pollack, said he was on the subway platform clearing the train of passengers at the end of the line when he was brutally attacked by a man.

“I was going on the platform checking every car, seeing off the passengers,” Pollack said. “The guy is standing there on the far side of one of the cars … We caught eye contact. He read my lips through the window. I said, ‘You have to get off.’”

Pollack speculated that the man was on some type of drug because he was “shaking a lot.”

“The guy walks over with a flat smirk and he touched me on my shoulder as if to say ‘thank you.’ Because usually that’s what they do. Like, ‘Thank you for telling me that I have to get off this train.’ He touched me lightly on my shoulder,” Pollack said.

Pollack said the man then unexpectedly pulled out a large knife and started stabbing him.

“I was shocked because I had never seen a knife that big outside of a kitchen. And he just started stabbing me,” Pollack said. “There was a lady nearby and she started screaming, ‘Oh, he’s stabbing him! He’s stabbing him!’”

Pollack said he tried to fight off the man and get away, but the man kept repeatedly stabbing him.

“Then he suddenly stopped. He stopped because when I looked up, there were four police officers with their guns drawn on him. And that’s about the last that I remember. He was backing away. They were backing him away with their guns, telling him to drop it,” Pollack said.

Pollack said there was so much blood around him that he couldn’t see the platform below him.

Pollack was taken to a hospital and underwent two surgeries, according to the Transport Workers Union (TWU) Local 100, which provided an update on his condition on Friday.

Pollack remains in the intensive care unit as he continues to recover, but he is now stable and was able to provide a detailed account of what he experienced, according to the union.

Pollack has more than 30 years of experience and was set to retire in December, according to TWU Local 100 President Richard Davis.

“He is a modest man. This shouldn’t happen to anyone, but he’s the least expected person because of his demeanor,” Davis said. “He’s in great spirits. He wanted his coworkers to know that he’s well.”

Police arrested the suspect, who was identified as 27-year-old Bronx resident Jonathan Davalos. He was charged with attempted murder, assault and menacing, police said.

Davis said Davalos has a “long rap sheet.”

“He should not have been out,” Davis said. “We want to make sure the attempted murder charge is upheld and he goes away for the rest of his life and never comes back to the street because obviously he does not belong in society.”

Finn Hoogensen is a digital journalist who has covered local news for more than five years. He has been with PIX11 News since 2022. See more of his work here .

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