Woman brutally beaten in NYC subway by suspect with lengthy arrest record of physical violence, including murdering his grandmother

A woman was brutally beaten in the New York City subway last week by a man with a lengthy arrest record of physical violence, including the 1995 murder of his grandmother.

On September 20, around 5:15 a.m., 33-year-old Elizabeth Gomes was attacked by a stranger at the Howard Beach-JFK Airport station in Queens.

The vicious assault was captured on surveillance video and showed Gomes trying to get away from the suspicious man.

The suspect, 41-year-old Waheed Foster, allegedly tried to have a conversation with Gomes but became frustrated when she ignored him.

The video shows the man chasing after the woman as she runs across the mezzanine. The man grabs Gomes and slams her into the wall, where she falls to the ground.

While Gomes is still on the ground, the man punches her five times and stomps on her. Another man approaches to confront the conflict but flees as soon as the suspect turns to approach him.

The video shows the suspect returning his attention to Gomes, who has now risen to her knees. He approaches her slowly and looms over her for a moment before kicking her five more times.

Police responded to the scene and arrested Foster. Gomes was transported to the hospital, where she was treated for a severe eye injury.

In an emotional interview with WABC-TV, Gomes recounted the events of that morning and discussed her injuries.

"Do you know how scared I am now? I was never a person to be scared," Gomes stated.

The victim explained that she might lose vision in her right eye. She said, "I can't see anything on my right side, honestly. And it just hurts."

Gomes noted that her head is still throbbing from the attack, and she has barely slept in a week.

"Man, I watched the video, and it tears my heart out of me," said the victim's husband, Clement Tucker.

The victim explained that the man who attacked her was muttering incoherent nonsense and talking about "Satan" before grabbing and beating her.

"Every day is an incident in the subway," Gomes said. "What happened to all these police officers they said they will have there to protect us? There's like nobody to be found. I don't understand."

Following the attack on Gomes, Foster was charged with felony assault and is currently being held without bail.

In 1995, Foster was arrested at just 14 years old for beating and murdering his 82-year-old foster grandmother, Ariela Mascha. She suffered 20 broken ribs, a stab wound to her leg, and a punctured liver. He later confessed to the murder and was convicted.

Foster was arrested six years later for stabbing his sister with a screwdriver.

Foster was arrested again in 2010 when he attacked three workers at a psychiatric care center where he was an inpatient. Police said he punched two workers and stabbed another in the cheek and shoulder. For that assault, Foster was sentenced to parole until November 2024.