The man accused of stabbing two people in a frenzied rush hour attack at Grand Central Station was angry over one of the victims accidentally stepping on his shoes, Manhattan prosecutors said Friday.
Gavin Ferguson whipped out a knife with a light purple or pink handle and lunged at his first victim just as they were exiting a Brooklyn-bound No. 5 train at the Midtown transit hub at about 7:15 a.m. Wednesday.
He was stabbing his 28-year-old victim when a 32-year-old good Samaritan tried to break up the fight, giving the first victim enough time to escape, Manhattan Assistant District Attorney Grace Snider said at a brief arraignment proceeding Thursday.
Ferguson, 30, dropped his cellphone during the attack, which was recovered at the scene, officials said. A short time later, he called the phone, asking the person who picked it up if he could get it back, prosecutors said.
He was arrested shortly after the stabbing and is facing attempted murder and assault charges. The entire attack was caught on MTA surveillance cameras, Snider noted, calling the attack “unprovoked.”
After he was grabbed, he told cops that he “felt disrespected” because the younger victim had stepped on his shoes while they rode on the crowded train, officials said.
A Manhattan Criminal Court judge ordered Ferguson held on $500,000 bail. If he’s convicted, he could be facing up to 25 years in prison.
After his shoes were stepped on, Ferguson got up from his seat and stepped up to the 28-year-old victim just as the subway doors opened, officials said.
The victim stepped out of the way to let Ferguson leave, but the defendant “turned around and began punching and stabbing” the victim, Snider said.
“A physical altercation ensued between [the victim] and the defendant in which the defendant moved his arm in a manner consistent with stabbing [the victim] to the torso multiple times,” court papers read.
Ferguson repeatedly stabbed his victim in the stomach. When the good Samaritan jumped into the fray, the first victim ran out of the subway car, prosecutors said.
Ferguson turned to his new victim, knifing him in the upper body and buttocks. The good Samaritan jumped on the bench train seat against the wall “trying to dodge the defendant’s blows” as witnesses scrambled out of the train, Snider said.
The stabber fled the train station and ran off to work, where he changed his clothes, cops said. He quickly realized that he had dropped his phone during the attack and called his number in an attempt to get it back as cops were processing evidence.
Medics took both victims to Bellevue Hospital Center in stable condition, cops said.
Cops ultimately tracked Ferguson at his job a few blocks away from the station. He still had his knife on him when he was taken into custody, prosecutors said.
Ferguson has no prior arrests, police said. A call to his attorney, Paul D’Emilia, was not immediately returned.
