A group of teenagers stormed onto a Metro train Thursday evening, threatened riders and beat a man, a school principal told News4.
Hours after police say a 35-year-old man was beaten and kicked by a group of teens in the Gallery Place-Chinatown station, teens surged onto a Red Line train and harassed passengers, the principal said. He asked not to be identified for fear of retaliation.
The private school principal said his ride was peaceful when he boarded at the Brookland-CUA station about 5 p.m. Thursday. Trouble began when a group of teens boarded at the NoMa-Gallaudet U station and began yelling.
"They came right over to me and surrounded my seat, and they were swearing at me. They were yelling at me, and they pulled my hat off and threw it down the train," he said.
The teens then hit another man in the face with a snowball and began beating him.
"There was one girl who was really kicking him and smiling and laughing," he said. "I was trying to get her off him."
The principal finally exited the train at the Judiciary Square station and reported the incident to Metro. An agency representative said the suspects have been identified, and officers are talking with witnesses.
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New Metro board chair Jack Evans said Friday safety is a primary concern, and he plans to try to get more officers on trains and in stations.
The principal said he wanted officials to make trains safer fast.
"Folks, whether it's city officials or Metro police, don't seem to be doing enough to prevent it," he said. "I feel angry that as an innocent person, it's not safe to ride Metro."
