On a New York City subway, a mob of adolescents allegedly assaulted a Fox News weatherman returning from a bar early on Sunday. According to New York City police, four teenagers attacked Adam Klotz, 37, after he urged them to stop using marijuana and bothering an elderly passenger.
Klotz was sent to the hospital with non-life-threatening head injuries, according to the police. Klotz, who made a visible black eye appearance on the broadcast on Monday, claimed that his midsection was damaged and that he was having problems moving his knee.
Police reported that a 17-year-old male and two 15-year-old males were detained. According to authorities, they have been returned to their guardians while an investigation into the incident, including their treatment of the elderly passenger, is conducted.
The fourth teen ran away, according to police. According to Klotz, who appeared on Fox News, he intervened after the teenagers set a senior citizen’s hair ablaze with a lighter they were also using to burn a joint.
According to police, the teenagers didn’t assault anyone else. Klotz claimed that after the initial assault, he attempted to flee the crowd by boarding a different subway vehicle. He claimed that the youths attacked him again after chasing him.
“I want someone to be held responsible, but I want some sort of change,” Klotz said. Klotz criticized Mayor Eric Adams, saying the city does not adequately address subway violence.
“Why is the weather guy on the train trying to stop crime in the middle of the night?” he said.
Millions of people use the public transportation system every day, but it has recently seen an increase in violent attacks and transit crimes. On Monday morning, Adams stated that “we must ensure that people feel comfortable” on the metro.
At a press conference about economic growth, he stated, “The best way to do that is to have that visible presence of a police officer.”
The Subway Safety Plan was developed by Adams and New York Governor Kathy Hochul last year to reduce transportation crime. The municipal administration stated in a news release that the plan’s most recent revisions included care for homeless people with severe mental health conditions, 10,000 additional hours of overtime police patrol at over 300 subway stops, and more subway cameras.
