An elderly Air Force veteran who was shoved onto the tracks at a Manhattan subway station in a random attack has died of his injuries — and the alleged killer now faces murder charges.
Richard Williams, 83, was waiting on the downtown platform for the F and Q trains at the Lexington Ave.-63rd St. station when he was shoved onto the tracks around 11:30 a.m. on March 8. Moments before, the assailant had pushed a 30-year-old man standing next to Williams onto the tracks as well without saying a word, cops said.
Bairon Hernandez, 34, who was arrested March 10 for attempted murder, had the charges against him upgraded Wednesday to murder for Williams’ death, court records show.
Williams was rushed to New York-Presbyterian Hospital Weill Cornell in critical condition, where he died on March 17. His heartbroken daughter told the Daily News just days after the attack that he was not expected to survive.
Suspect Bairon Hernandez, 34, who allegedly shoved two people onto the subway tracks over the weekend being walked by detectives from the Upper East Side on March 10, 2026. (Kerry Burke/New York Daily News)
“It doesn’t look good,” the victim’s eldest daughter, Debbie Williams, told The News from her father’s hospital bedside. “He is on life support.”
The city’s medical examiner attributed Williams’ cause of death to multiple blunt-force injuries, cops said.
A cancer survivor, Williams led an active life prior to the attack, his daughter said.
“My father loves the city,” the victim’s daughter said. “He was on his way to get sushi. He took the subway all the time. He’s always been a New Yorker. He raised his three daughters on Long Island.”
Williams recently celebrated his 55th wedding anniversary and was enjoying his retirement after a career making bulletproof equipment, family members said.
Hernandez is a Honduran immigrant who was captured at a Brooklyn homeless shelter after an acquaintance recognized his photo, according to law enforcement sources.
“That son of a b—-, I hope he rots in hell,” Debbie Williams said. “To push one person down and then to push another down?”
An attorney for Hernandez said his client had strong community ties — living with a roommate in Brooklyn, employed at the same job for 14 years, and with his father living close by in Jersey City.
“He vehemently denies these allegations,” said attorney Michael Papson. “He’s never been arrested in the state of New York — ever.”
Hernandez was held on bail set at $100,000 cash and $300,000 bond after pleading not guilty at his arraignment in Manhattan Criminal Court earlier this month. He is due to be arraigned Monday on the new charges.