We have a shocking story to report out of the Bronx today.
A 29-year-old medical student named Anton Aleshin has been accused of pushing an elderly man in front of a moving train in the early hours of New Year’s Day.
The victim, 73-year-old Luis Figueroa, was knocked unconscious.
But miraculously, he managed to survive the alleged attack.
Aleshin was arrested at the scene and charged with attempted murder, assault, reckless endangerment, and harassment.
According to a report from The New York Post, he told police that he was a doctor in his native Russia, and is currently halfway through a residency program at Brookdale University Hospital Medical Center.
The Post reports that Aleshin “may have been intoxicated” at the time of the attack.
He and Figueroa were not previously acquainted, and there seems to have been no provocation prior to the alleged attack.
Police say Aleshin pleaded not guilty during his Bronx Criminal Court arraignment.
Aleshin is currently being held without bail.
Figueroa, a grandfather of 17 is still recovering in the ICU at Lincoln Hospital in the Bronx.
His niece Venis Falu said Figeroa was on his way home from a night at Empire City Casino in Yonkers.
“He doesn’t really remember what happened,” she told WKTV News.
“It’s crazy that this could happen to a person who normally goes out, doesn’t bother anybody,” Falu continued, adding:
“To me, it had to be either he was drunk or having a bad day, but that’s no excuse to hurt anybody. It made no sense.”
Aleshin’s attorney, who was reportedly appointed by the nonprofit organization Legal Aid, declined to comment on the situation.
We will have further updates on this developing story as new information becomes available.