Suspect identified in Davisville subway stabbing

Police have identified a Toronto man accused of stabbing a passenger on the subway Wednesday night.

Cassim Celani Cummings, 20, is wanted for attempted murder, aggravated assault, failing to comply with probation and three weapons offences.

Officers say Cummings got on a southbound train at Eglinton station just after 10 p.m. and began harassing and yelling at passengers. The victim — a 35-year-old man from Barrie — was stabbed when he stood up as the suspect approached him.

“There was zero dialogue between the victim and the suspect,” Det. Murray Barnes said. “It was a vicious, unprovoked attack which, only by the grace of God, the victim survived.”

Audrey Wu, a passenger on the train, told CityNews she didn’t witness the stabbing, but saw the victim staggering toward her right after.

“All of us were very confused,” she said. “We were all sort of waiting, not sure what to do.”

She said although there was a lot of blood, the victim was conscious and talking and was able to follow instructions when a doctor came over to help.

Several other passengers joined in, activating the train’s emergency alarm, calling police on their cellphones and even applying pressure to the wound.

“Other passengers helped the victim and, I would say, saved his life,” Barnes said.

The victim, who was slashed in the neck and suffered serious, but non-life-threatening injuries, remains in hospital.

On Thursday police released a series of security images of Cummings, who got off at Davisville station. He’s around six feet tall and was wearing a hooded sweatshirt with playing cards on the front, a black toque, black pants and a black jacket. He was carrying a white plastic bag.

Police describe him as armed and dangerous.

“We do have a safe system and we live in a relatively safe city,” TTC chair Karen Stintz said.

“While I don’t want to minimize what happened yesterday — because again it is an extremely concerning incident — I wouldn’t want our riding public to think that that’s what the system is.”

 

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