A man arrested for the fatal stabbing of a father of six aboard a Queen subway train allowed his victim to briefly escape after breaking a knife in the unprovoked attack, only to chase down the wounded man and finish him off with a second blade, prosecutors said Monday.
Jyrell Thomas attacked Mesias Lojano with a kitchen knife aboard a Jamaica Center-bound J train around 5:15 p.m. Wednesday, according to Brooklyn Prosecutors.
When that blade snapped, Lojano, 59, used the opportunity to break away from his attacker — but he couldn’t escape from the crowded, rush-hour train.
When the doors opened at the Woodhaven Blvd. stop, passengers stampeded onto the platform as Thomas, 25, continued his attack, forcing Lojano to the ground and repeatedly stabbing him with a second knife, Queens prosecutors said.
Thomas then fled the station, swiping his blade to ward off good Samaritans who tried to restrain him, only to be hounded by fellow commuters to the rooftop of a nearby garage, where he was arrested as police closed in, prosecutors said.
Medics rushed Lojano to Jamaica Hospital suffering stab wounds and lacerations to his chest, back, neck and hands. He could not be saved.
The chilling new details in the senseless attack were revealed at Thomas’s arraignment in Queens Criminal Court, where he was ordered held without bail after pleading not guilty.
Thomas, whose been receiving medical and psychiatric care since his arrest, appeared at his arraignment from his hospital bed via video conference wearing a blue surgical mask and medical gown.
Police described the defendant, a south South Bronx resident, as emotionally disturbed, although his only interaction with the NYPD prior to the fatal stabbing was an arrest for petty larceny last month in the Bronx.
An Ecuadorian immigrant, Lojano worked hard in construction to build a life for his wife, their six children and four grandchildren, the victim’s son said.
“My father was a good man. He was a hardworking, honest man,” the victim’s son, 39-year-old William Lojano, told the Daily News Thursday. “I feel very sad. The truth is, I can’t think. I can’t talk about it. I want justice.”
The victim’s family created a GoFundMe to cover his funeral expenses.
“We are his children, William, Laura, Darwin, and Edwin, and we are heartbroken,” the GoFundMe reads. “Thank you for your kindness, generosity, and love. Every gesture reminds us that we are not alone.”