A woman was brutally assaulted Wednesday morning at a Pasadena subway station in an attack that authorities described as attempted murder.
Around 5:45 a.m. at the Allen subway station near Pasadena City College, a man suddenly walked up to the woman and punched her in the face, authorities said.
He continued to beat the woman until she fell to the ground, where he then grabbed her and began slamming her head against the platform several times, according to preliminary internal reports from the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority obtained by The Times.
The man then pushed the woman onto the tracks and dragged her over the concrete freeway divider and onto the 210 Freeway, which runs parallel to the above-ground subway platform, the reports said. The woman was then able to escape and has since been treated at a hospital where she was reported to be in stable condition pending further medical assessment.
The attack was unprovoked, according to authorities, and the woman did not know the man.
A person matching the description of the suspect was located a few blocks away and was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder, according to deputies with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Transit Services Bureau. Additional information is being withheld pending further charges.
Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn, who serves as chair of Metro’s board, said she was deeply disturbed by the details of the attack.
“Our board will need a full investigation of this incident, an account of where both Metro’s contracted law enforcement and transit security were when this woman was attacked, and a plan to increase security during early commute times,” Hahn said. “Our trains, buses and stations must be safe for our riders, and we must continue to implement safety reforms to get our system to that point.”
Times staff writer Rachel Uranga contributed to this report.