MIDTOWN — A police officer was knocked unconscious while trying to arrest a suspected turnstile jumper on a Times Square subway platform Monday morning, police said.
The officer was rushed to New York-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center in serious but stable condition, police said.
The officer was injured during a struggle as he tried to cuff 19-year-old Daniel Walker, who allegedly skipped paying his subway fare at the A,C,E subway station at 42nd Street and Eighth Avenue.
When Walker allegedly put up a fight, the officer radioed for back-up. Cops who responded to the call for help found Walker on top of the officer, apparently choking him, police said. Walker, a Harlem resident, was taken into custody and charged with assault, fare evasion, resisting arrest and criminal trespassing.
Cops stationed outside the subway station Monday said the officer's partner was also injured in the struggle, which happened as a train was speeding into the station. "On a platform, it's actually very dangerous," said Sgt. Mark Massetti of the NYPD's transit task force.
The officer was hit on the head during the struggle, Massetti said.
