MIDTOWN — A Midtown man with a history of assault arrests was charged with a violent attack on a cab driver, who needed ten stitches to mend his bloodied ear, police said Wednesday.
Francisco Solano, 42, was arrested Tuesday afternoon and charged with assault for an attack on cab driver Haroon Rashid at 57th Street and 10th Avenue on Oct. 2.
Solano allegedly bit the driver's ear and punched him in the face, but the motive for the attack was not immediately clear.
Photos published after this incident in several news reports show the victim's bloody ear and bruised face, injuries he claimed were caused by his attacker.
Police said Solano has five arrests dating back to 1997, including drug possession and two for misdemeanor assault. The outcome of those cases was not immediately clear.
The New York Taxi Workers Alliance and Rashid reportedly accused officers at the scene of threatening to arrest Rashid if he tried to make a complaint about the attack.
"The police just let him go...like my blood was nothing," Rashid told the Daily News.
The matter is currently under review by the Internal Affairs Bureau, police said Wednesday.