Man sentenced for pushing 77-year-old at Atlantic Terminal

Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez announced that a Brooklyn man has been sentenced to 13 years in prison for violently attacking an elderly man on a commuter train platform at Atlantic Terminal and pushing him onto the tracks.

The defendant was convicted of attempted murder.

“This was a horrific and unprovoked attack on a 77-year-old man at one of our busiest transit hubs, and the victim could have been killed had it not been for the quick action of a transit worker,” the DA said.

“We’ve made real progress improving safety in our transit system, and we will not allow anyone to jeopardize that.”

The defendant Matthew Lloyd, 38, of Queens, was sentenced by Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Michael Kitsis to 13 years in prison and five years of post-release supervision. The defendant was convicted of second-degree attempted murder on April 10, 2025, following a jury trial.

According to the evidence, on Aug. 18, 2023, at approximately 4:20 p.m., the victim, a 77-year-old man, was standing on the Long Island Rail Road platform for Track 5 at the Atlantic Terminal when the defendant approached and, without provocation, punched him multiple times in the face.

The defendant then pushed the victim off the platform, causing him to fall approximately five feet onto the tracks and strike his head near the electrified third rail. The defendant fled the scene on foot.

The incident was captured on surveillance video, which was played for the Court during the trial.

The victim was rescued from the tracks by a Long Island Rail Road mechanical foreman, who heard the victim’s screams and immediately called to stop train traffic on Track 5.

Trains are sometimes diverted between tracks, and his actions may have prevented the victim from being struck.

The victim suffered significant and ongoing pain for several months after the attack and continues to struggle with mobility. He also suffers from lasting vision and memory impairments caused by the head injury he sustained when he was pushed onto the tracks.

The DA thanked Orange Zone Paralegal Jamal Marshall and Digital Forensic Analyst Christina Stewart of the Digital Evidence Lab for their assistance on the case.

This case was prosecuted by Senior Assistant District Attorney Matthew Barg and Assistant District Attorney Jane Dowling, of the District Attorney’s Orange Zone Trial Bureau, under the supervision of Deputy Bureau Chiefs Assistant District Attorney Michael Trabulsi and Assistant District Attorney Iris Das and the overall supervision of Assistant District Attorney Danielle Eaddy, Bureau Chief.