Police Shoot Machete-Wielding Man After Grand Central Terminal Attack

A machete attack in one of New York’s busiest transit hubs ended only after police shot the suspect, a violent episode that put a spotlight on how quickly danger can spread through a crowded commuter system. Authorities said 44-year-old Anthony Griffin slashed three people inside Grand Central Terminal before officers killed him after he refused more than 20 commands to drop the weapon.

Police said the attack began after Griffin boarded a Manhattan-bound No. 7 train at Vernon Boulevard in Queens and arrived at Grand Central around 9:30 a.m. or shortly after on Saturday, April 11, 2026. Officers said he was acting erratically and repeatedly said he was “Lucifer” as he moved through the station. The victims were identified as an 84-year-old man on the No. 7 platform, a 65-year-old man, and a 70-year-old woman on the 4/5/6 platform.

All three were taken to hospitals and were expected to survive, though police said one victim suffered a skull fracture and severe head lacerations. Investigators said the slashes appeared random. The scale of the attack, inside a station that carried 33,496,874 riders in 2024 and ranked second in the city subway system, underscored how a single fast-moving assailant can create risk for hundreds of passengers in minutes.

Officers said Griffin advanced toward them after ignoring repeated orders to drop the machete. Police shot him twice, and he was pronounced dead at Bellevue Hospital. The NYPD said there was no connection to terrorism and that it would conduct an internal investigation and release body-worn camera footage, as is standard in officer-shooting cases.

Griffin had three prior arrests in New York City, police said. Later reporting identified him as a Bronx battle rapper known as “Fox 5,” and friends described him as creative and community-minded, while others said he had struggled with mental health. That fuller portrait did not change the immediate public-safety concern on the platform: a person in visible crisis, carrying a deadly weapon, was able to move from train to terminal before officers stopped him.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority temporarily bypassed Grand Central on the 4, 5, 6 and 7 lines while the investigation continued. Mayor Zohran Mamdani praised the NYPD’s response, and Gov. Kathy Hochul said she had been briefed and was grateful officers stopped the suspect. The episode raised the same hard question for transit agencies and police alike: what could have interrupted Griffin’s escalation before a crowded station became the scene of a fatal confrontation.