Images released of man who punched woman, 85, in random attack at Kipling Station

By Michael Ranger and Lucas Casaletto

A woman, 85, was seriously injured after an apparent random attack at Kipling Station on Thursday morning.

Toronto police received reports that a man assaulted a woman at the Etobicoke TTC station around 11:15 a.m.

Officers arrived at the platform level to find a woman unconscious. The victim was revived and transported to a hospital with serious but non-life-threatening injuries.

Police say the woman was travelling through the station when she was attacked by what appears to be a random stranger. The suspect then fled through the station.

Investigators tell CityNews the woman was punched in the face/head.

“I have no idea what this person would be thinking randomly attacking someone who is more advanced in age,” Const. David Hopkinson said.

“Especially such a vicious attack that would knock someone out. I don’t know what would cause someone to do that.”

Police are searching for a man believed to be in his 30s. He is around 6 feet and was seen wearing a black shirt, black pants, a black toque, and a white scarf. Toronto police released photos of him on Friday morning.

“Our thoughts are with the victim for a speedy recovery,” TTC spokesperson Stuart Green said in an email to CityNews.

“We will offer whatever assistance we can to aid police as they investigate.

“Safety is paramount to all we do, and the TTC is safe by any global measurement. We move hundreds of millions of customers every year without incident. Still, we never take that for granted, which is why we are continually looking at ways to make the system even safer,” Green added.

One woman, named Brenda, called the latest act of violence disturbing.

“I really don’t know if people are calling for more accountability on part of the TTC,” she told CityNews.

“There needs to be TTC police, but they can’t be everywhere all the time. That is resonable. I think you’ve got to keep your head up and watch who is coming. I don’t know. I can only hope that I am never a victim of that.”

Brenda says that despite the recent crimes committed at TTC stations, particularly Kipling, she will keep commuting and travelling by bus and subway.

“I am still not unnerved,” she said. “I rely on the TTC quite a bit. My husband and my daughter are more concerned about me taking the TTC than I am.”

Woman set on fire

Emergency crews were on the scene at Kipling Station after a man set a woman on fire on June 17, 2022. (CityNews Toronto/Mark Douglas)


The incident comes weeks after a woman was set on fire at Kipling Station in another seemingly random attack.

The TTC vowed to increase patrols in light of the incident and said they are in the process of hiring 60 special constables that were approved in the last year.

The transit commission’s President, Rick Leary, mentioned an effort to modernize stations and install more cameras with additional staff visible to deter criminal acts.

The victim in the June 17 fire incident succumbed to her injuries earlier this week. The assault is being investigated as a hate-motivated attack. The woman has not been identified.

A 33-year-old suspect from Toronto, identified as Tenzin Norbu, is in custody and faces several charges, including attempted murder. The charges will likely be upgraded in light of the victim’s death.


Related: TTC riders left with safety concerns after woman set on fire in shocking attack


The TTC and Mayor John Tory spoke of boosting safety on the city’s public transit earlier this year after a previous string of violence at subway stations.

A woman was pushed onto the subway tracks at Bloor-Yonge station on April 17, suffering a broken rib and narrowly escaping getting struck by a train.

Toronto police were searching for another suspect who allegedly robbed a victim after putting them in a chokehold and knocking them unconscious at Pioneer Village station.

Note: Toronto police originally reported the woman as being in her 60s. She is 85.

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