Watch CBS News

Violent Struggle Between SEPTA Officer, Suspect On Subway Platform Caught On Tape

By Diana Rocco

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — Caught on surveillance video -- an intense struggle between a SEPTA police officer and a suspect on a Broad Street line platform Monday afternoon.

It happened on the subway platform at Broad and Fairmount.

"And as you can see, the battle here is intense. I mean, he is definitely trying to hurt this officer," SEPTA Inspector of Operations Steve Harold said.

Scary moments as a SEPTA police officer is attacked in front of a train full of passengers.

"There was a man on the train saying that he had a gun and he was threatening to shoot passengers," Harold said.

The man got on at the Girard stop on the Broad Street Line heading south. SEPTA officer Ronald Jones caught up with him a stop later and tried to pull him off the train. Right away, it escalated.

"And you can see that they're falling. He's battling with him, he's fighting," Harold said.

Surveillance video shows Jones pulled pepper spray and his baton, but the suspect, believed to be on drugs, keeps coming. The two are rolling on the ground when passengers get off the train to help.

"Almost all passengers on board that train hailed that officer as a hero and said that officer used great restraint in the way he managed the situation," Harold said.

The fight lasts several minutes, both men are bloody. The suspect tries repeatedly to reach for the officer's gun and when things seem over, he manages to get away leaving passengers running. Eventually backup arrives and the suspect is taken into custody.

"It would make me think that SEPTA's going to get more security," a subway rider said. "It's shouldn't be just one cop."

"That's great that people jumped in because I've heard horror stories of people just sitting there watching. Really bad things happen," subway rider Michael Warhola said.

The suspect is in police custody.

The SEPTA officer suffered minor injuries and was treated at a nearby hospital then released.

The officer did lose a cell phone and a badge during the ordeal. SEPTA police are asking for the badge to be returned.

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.