A homeless, emotionally disturbed Newark man launched a random knife rampage inside one of the busiest transit hubs in the United States on Sunday evening, sending panicked commuters fleeing for their lives and leaving five people bleeding on the concourse floor. Amtrak Police tackled and arrested the suspect within minutes.
New York City’s Penn Station became the scene of a bloody, unprovoked rampage on Sunday evening when Hector DeLeon, 51, unleashed a random knife attack around 7 p.m. inside the New Jersey Transit boarding area, filling the station with the screams of victims as crowds of terrified commuters ran for their lives. By the time Amtrak Police officers wrestled him to the ground, five people had been slashed and a sixth — the suspect himself — would be transported to hospital. All six victims were rushed to Bellevue Hospital and are expected to survive.
The attack, which law enforcement sources described as entirely random, lasted only minutes but left an indelible mark on one of the most trafficked transportation hubs in the Western hemisphere — a station that processes hundreds of thousands of passengers daily and sits at the heart of the northeast corridor rail network connecting New York, New Jersey and beyond.
Sunday evening was no ordinary evening at Penn Station. Hundreds of thousands of travelers were already passing through the city due to an influx of visitors arriving ahead of upcoming regional FIFA World Cup events and the New York Knicks’ deep NBA Finals run. The violence erupted less than 24 hours before President Donald Trump was set to arrive at Madison Square Garden for Game 3 of the Knicks’ NBA Finals matchup against the San Antonio Spurs, an event expected to draw massive crowds and heightened security throughout Midtown Manhattan. The concourses were packed. Families with luggage, sports fans in jerseys, late-shift commuters and tourists navigating the underground maze of Amtrak, NJ Transit and Long Island Rail Road platforms all shared the space — and all were suddenly thrust into chaos.
The Attack: A Rampage in the NJ Transit Boarding Area
The New York City Fire Department received reports at 7:02 p.m. local time that a person had stabbed multiple bystanders near the New Jersey Transit boarding area. The bloody incident unfolded inside the transit hub near 33rd Street and 8th Avenue. According to sources close to the case, the male suspect was emotionally disturbed when he went on the attack, slashing victims with a sharp object at random before Amtrak Police tackled him to the ground near tracks 5 and 6.
Witnesses described moments of sheer terror as DeLeon moved through the crowded concourse. There was no argument, no confrontation, no warning. He simply turned on whoever was nearest and attacked. Multiple Amtrak Police officers stunned and tackled the suspect shortly after he allegedly went on the rampage. Video obtained by CBS News shows officers covering his head in the NJ Transit area and taking him away in a wheelchair.
A knife was recovered from the scene. Police sources confirmed DeLeon appeared to be under the influence of a controlled substance at the time of the attack.
The Victims: Six Hospitalised, All Expected to Survive
The six victims range in age from 16 to 65, with the oldest suffering the most serious injuries. All were innocent bystanders who happened to be in DeLeon’s path when he brandished his blade.
Among those injured was 60-year-old Henry Obadiah, who had just stepped off an NJ Transit train when he found himself directly in DeLeon’s path. Obadiah was slashed across the right side of his face and lip, a wound that required several stitches to close. Speaking exclusively to CBS News New York correspondent Lisa Rozner, Obadiah described the moment DeLeon turned on him without warning.
“He looks at me with this rage in his face and then he just came with a roundhouse,” Obadiah said. “Whoever was in his path — he didn’t know me for nothing. I was just walking by and he came at me for no reason.”
Obadiah went on to describe the harrowing scene that unfolded around him in the immediate aftermath. “There was blood all over the place. One kid has a bandage on his head, sitting down, blood coming out. Cops are running in all these directions.” Then, with a pause that carried the full weight of what he had survived, he added: “I’m lucky to be alive.”
The youngest victim is 16 years old — a teenager in a busy train station on a Sunday evening, now recovering from a knife wound inflicted by a stranger for no discernible reason. The sight of a bleeding teenager on the Penn Station concourse floor encapsulates everything that made Sunday’s attack so deeply disturbing to the city that witnessed it.
Who Is Hector De Leon?
DeLeon, 51, of Newark, New Jersey, was taken into custody by Amtrak Police who tackled him to the ground at the scene. Law enforcement sources identified him as a homeless individual described as emotionally disturbed, with no terror connections of any kind. He was not previously known to Amtrak Police.
According to sources who spoke to amNewYork, DeLeon has six prior arrests in New Jersey on his criminal record, the most recent of which occurred in May — just weeks before Sunday’s rampage. That arrest was on assault and narcotics charges. Details of that prior incident were not immediately available.
Witness Michael Christian, who was present during the attack and told CBS News he had seen DeLeon at the station before, said the violence caught him entirely off guard. “He was just screaming, waving his head around,” Christian said. “I’ve seen him once, but I didn’t think he was capable of doing anything.”
Twenty-one-year-old bystander Sanai Rashid told the New York Post that the attack, while horrifying, reflected a broader reality about the station. “Penn Station is not known for being the most safe area, especially in the evening, especially with just how busy it’s been recently with the Knicks game and Trump coming. It’s been a bit of a messy summer in general. I think there probably should be more security in Penn Station, but that’s devastating.”
That sentiment — shock without total surprise — is a telling reflection of the environment that Penn Station has become for many regular commuters. The dissonance of a person who appears troubled but not dangerous, until suddenly he is, sits at the heart of a broader public safety crisis facing American transit systems. Sunday’s attack did not emerge from nowhere. It emerged from a set of conditions — homelessness, untreated mental illness, substance use and inadequate intervention infrastructure — that have been building across the country’s major urban transit hubs for years.
Mayor Mamdani Responds
New York City Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani was briefed on the attack Sunday night and issued a public statement, striking a tone that balanced condemnation of the violence with acknowledgment of the institutional response.
“I’ve been briefed on the horrific stabbing at Penn Station,” Mamdani wrote on X. “Based on the information available right now, six people were stabbed and the alleged perpetrator is in custody following a swift response from the Amtrak Police Department. My heart is with everyone who was injured, their loved ones, and all those shaken by this unacceptable violence. I’m wishing each of the victims a full and speedy recovery.”
In a follow-up statement, the mayor added: “I’m grateful to the Amtrak Police Department and the first responders who acted quickly to apprehend the suspect and provide emergency care. There are currently no impacts to Amtrak service. My administration is in contact with Amtrak officials as they investigate this incident.”
The statement was measured — careful to praise law enforcement without wading into the politically charged debate over homelessness, mental health and transit safety that the attack will inevitably reignite.
A Station Under Strain
Penn Station is not simply a transit hub. It is a symbol — and not always a flattering one — of the contradictions at the heart of New York City. It handles roughly 600,000 passengers on peak days, making it the busiest railroad station in North America by some measures, and it has long struggled with issues of overcrowding, inadequate facilities and the complex social realities that accompany any space that never closes.
The station’s 24-hour nature makes it a de facto shelter for people experiencing homelessness, particularly during late-night hours, and the intersection of chronic homelessness, untreated mental illness and substance dependency creates conditions that transit authorities across the country have struggled to manage effectively. Sunday’s attack is being cited by some advocates as further evidence that investment in outreach, mental health intervention and social support services at major transit hubs is as urgently needed as investment in policing and physical infrastructure.
The Scene on Monday: Fear, Resilience and Unanswered Questions
By Monday morning, Penn Station had returned to its usual rhythm of rushing feet, announcement chimes and the smell of coffee from concourse kiosks. But the atmosphere carried an undercurrent of unease that was impossible to miss.
“You have to be cautious. Just keep your eyes open,” one rider told reporters on Monday, voicing a sentiment repeated across dozens of conversations throughout the day.
NJ Transit passenger Max Robinson of Trenton put it plainly: “Sometimes you’ll come here and this whole entire section will be like jam-packed. But when you’re here during the late-night hours, you gotta worry about what you have on you.”
Others expressed grief more than fear. “It’s really sad and I hope everyone’s okay and going to make it through this,” one woman said. “It’s definitely really scary to hear about, especially as we are coming to Penn Station today,” added a Manhattan resident.
Henry Obadiah is expected to recover from his facial wounds. The 16-year-old victim and the three others hospitalised alongside them face their own recoveries, physical and psychological. Whether the city’s institutions — law enforcement, mental health services, housing support — can address the conditions that produced Sunday’s attack is a question that will linger long after the stitches come out.
What Happens Next
DeLeon remains in custody. Prosecutors will determine the full scope of charges he faces, which are expected to include multiple counts of assault and weapons possession at minimum. The investigation is being led by Amtrak Police with support from the NYPD. Amtrak confirmed Sunday night that rail service at Penn Station was not disrupted by the attack and continues to operate normally.
For the five people who were stabbed — including a 60-year-old man who looked into the eyes of his attacker and saw only rage, and a teenager who simply happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong moment — normal is something they will have to rebuild, one day at a time.
LightHouz will continue to update this story as charges are filed and new information is released by law enforcement.
Sources
- CBS News New York — Jeff Capellini and Lisa Rozner. “5 people stabbed at Penn Station, Amtrak police say. Here’s what we know.” June 8, 2026
- amNewYork — Dean Moses. “Penn Station stabbing: New Jersey man arrested for bloody spree that left five people wounded.” June 8, 2026
- One America News Network — Lillian Mann. “NYC: 6 people injured in stabbing at Penn Station ahead of NBA Finals, suspect in custody.” June 8, 2026
- New York Post. “Homeless man arrested in Penn Station stabbing rampage.” June 8, 2026
- CNN. “6 wounded in stabbing at New York’s Penn Station ahead of NBA Finals.” June 8, 2026
- ABC7 New York — ABC News. “Five people were injured in a stabbing at Penn Station.” June 8, 2026
- Amtrak — Official Statement. “Earlier this afternoon, Amtrak Police responded to a reported stabbing at New York Penn Station.” June 8, 2026
- Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani — Official Statement via X @NYCMayor. June 8, 2026
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