NEAR WEST SIDE — A CTA employee was stabbed to death at the Damen Green Line station Thursday and detectives were looking for a suspect, according to police and news reports.

Chicago police said a 41-year-old man was stabbed by an “unknown male offender” after what began as a verbal altercation at 2:59 p.m. in the station’s mezzanine in the 2000 block of West Lake Street.

Police said that the suspect “produced a sharp object” and stabbed the man in the neck before fleeing westbound. The man was found unresponsive in a nearby room and later pronounced dead after being taken to Stroger Hospital.

The man was identified as a CTA worker by his labor union, according to Fox 32. He had been with the union since 2018.

The incident prompted Green Line trains to bypass Damen/Lake due to police activity, the Tribune reported. 

The suspect remained at large as of late Thursday afternoon and police said detectives were investigating.

The station remained closed around 7:30 p.m. as police and fire officials could be seen cleaning the scene. It was open again as of 11:30 p.m. for traffic after a concert at the nearby United Center.

The Green Line’s Damen station remained closed at 7:30 p.m., hours after a CTA employee was killed on Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026. It was open again as of 11:30 p.m. for post-concert traffic.The Green Line’s Damen station remained closed at 7:30 p.m., hours after a CTA employee was killed on Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026. It was open again as of 11:30 p.m. for post-concert traffic. Credit: Stephen Montemayor

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