What to Know
- The man accused of punching a 9-year-old girl in the face in broad daylight on Saturday was arrested several hours later
- Law enforcement sources say the alleged attacker also punched a woman this month at the same location, breaking her nose
- Police say the 30-year-old man is back in custody and facing another assault charge; it’s not clear why he’s targeted his victims at Grand Central
A random attack at one of Manhattan’s largest transit hubs led to the arrest of a man allegedly behind not one, but two assaults just days apart.
It was just before noon on Saturday when police say a 9-year-old girl and her mom were in the dining concourse at Grand Central when the man seemingly came out of nowhere to punch the girl in the face.
MTA police identified the man as 30-year-old Jean Carlos Zarzuela. He got away before the girl from the Bronx was taken to the hospital.
Brooke Gebo walked into work at a coffee shop in the concourse only a few minutes after the startling assault.
“My coworkers were like ‘oh my god like a child got punched today in front of Tartinery,’ and I was like ‘wow that’s terrible, who was it?’ and it’s this guy who has given us problems before,” Gebo said.
Court records show Zarzuela was arrested by police on April 4 and charged with assault. A law enforcement source told News 4 that he randomly punched a 54-year-old woman inside Grand Central. The assault broke the woman’s nose.
In that case, the source said a judge set bail at $2,500 cash. Zarzuela went to jail and on April 9 went before a different judge and was then released.
Just four days later, police said Zarzuela was back at Grand Central where he allegedly whacked the 9-year-old.
“He fake swings at people sometimes. But I guess he’s like actually swinging at people now,” Gebo said.
Gebo has been working in the bustling transit hub for about a year, and says she is not surprised to hear about another violent attack. Back on Christmas, two teenages tourists were stabbed in an unprovoked attack in the dining area.
“There is a very big mental health crisis here obviously, and like the reform for that isn’t gonna change fast. I don’t know, it’s a very nuanced issue,” she said Saturday.
Police nabbed the 30-year-old suspected puncher within a few hours.
“It doesn’t make any sense that this guy should be back in a public space where he can attack others, especially children,” MTA Communications Director Tim Minton said.
Zarzuela was picked up by police uptown several hours later. He’s expected to be charged with assault.
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