Police have arrested the man who allegedly attacked and slashed a lost tourist sleeping on a subway bench in lower Manhattan last week, law enforcement sources say.
Marvin Taylor, 24, is facing charges in the slashing of the 55-year-old man on the 6 train platform at the Bleecker Street station early Friday, according to sources.
He's expected to be arraigned Tuesday morning. It wasn't immediately clear if he had an attorney.
Taylor, who once lived in the Bronx but is now considered homeless, has been arrested 17 times before, most recently two months ago for farebeating, sources say. Other past charges have included burglary.
The victim in the subway slashing, a tourist from Israel, was returning from an appointment with a diamond salesperson in Manhattan's Diamond District when he got lost and fell asleep on a subway bench, according to sources.
The suspect woke him demanding money just before 4 a.m., authorities said. Surveillance video released by police shows the suspect allegedly using a knife to cut open the victim's pockets as the victim resists and struggles to exit the subway station.
The suspect stole about $2,000 from the victim, police said.
Afterward, the bleeding victim walked out of the station, where he was helped by good Samaritans. He was taken to Bellevue Hospital in stable condition.
Straphangers Monday said they were relieved by news of the arrest.
"It makes me feel much better now since they arrested him," said Jessica Medina of Soho.
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"It's a little unsettling that someone could be slashed," said Brad Elfman.
The attack added to a growing trend of slashings and stabbings across the city. From the start of the year through April 3, there have been 1,057 slashings and stabbings, compared to 852 last year during the same time period, according to the NYPD. That's a 25 percent increase.
