The New York City Police Department (NYPD) is searching for a man who slashed a male subway rider’s face shortly after the victim kissed his boyfriend.
The incident occurred around 7:50 p.m. last Saturday, when the unnamed 28-year-old victim kissed his boyfriend while riding the 6 train. The attacker then shouted an anti-gay slur at the couple, starting an argument, police told WPIX.
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The attacker then slashed the right side of the victim’s face with an unknown sharp object and then fled at the 23rd Street and Park Avenue station.
While the NYPD hasn’t apprehended the attacker, it did release surveillance camera images of the attacker, whose identity is mostly hidden by a black face covering. Police have urged anyone with information to call 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or to direct message them via the @nypdtips X account.
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Hate crimes against gay men in New York City have risen slightly from the second quarter of 2025 to the third quarter of the same year, according to the most up-to-date statistics available from the NYPD.
In the second quarter of 2025, the NYPD received 10 reports of anti-gay attacks, and in the year’s third quarter, that number increased to 12. While these numbers may seem low, the actual numbers could be higher, as queer men are sometimes less likely to report their assaults to police for fear of experiencing additional homophobia from officers.
A November 2025 study found that LGBTQ+ people are significantly more likely to be stopped, harassed, and even falsely accused by the police than non-LGBTQ+ people. As a result, LGBTQ+ people are less likely to contact the police when they need support, the study noted.
The study also found that negative police interactions often had a lasting impact. A “growing body of research” suggests that there are “associations between police violence and harassment and binge drinking, stress, depression, and other negative health outcomes,” the study’s authors wrote.
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