NYC Man Who Shoved 76-Year-Old Onto Subway Tracks Was Discharged From Psychiatric Care Hours Before Attack

A man from New York has been charged with murder after he allegedly pushed an elderly man down the stairs at the Chelsea subway. Authorities said that the man was released from a psychiatric evaluation hours before the incident.

The New York man, charged with murder has been identified as 32-year-old Rhamell Bruke. He made his first court appearance on May 9. Bruke has been charged with second-degree murder in connection with the incident of May 7, where he allegedly shoved an older man down the stairs.

According to police, surveillance footage showed Bruke coming up behind the 76-year-old man and violently shoving him down the stairs at the 18th Street subway station. The incident occurred around 9:30 p.m. on May 7 at the Chelsea subway.

Officers said the man seen in the video was later identified as 76-year-old Ross Falzone. Surveillance footage shows Falzone flying into the air, hitting his head on the steps and landing at the bottom of the staircase.

Paramedics arrived at the scene and found Falzone unconscious and unresponsive. They took him to Bellevue Hospital, where he died from his injuries overnight. Bruke was arraigned on murder charges, and the judge ordered him held in custody without bail.

According to the mayor's office, Bruke was taken to Bellevue Hospital for a psychiatric evaluation just hours before incident.

Officers said he was released after about one hour and discharged from the hospital. According to Fox News, Brook had allegedly been arrested four times since February 2026.

New York City Mayor Zhoran Mamdani released a statement calling for an investigation into Bellevue Hospital's handling of Bruke's case. "I am horrified by the killing of Ross Falzone and the circumstances that led to it," he said in a press release. " New Yorkers deserve better."

According to Eyewitness News, Falzone’s sister said, “He won’t hurt anybody. He is a bag of bones. He is not even 100 pounds. There is no amount of anger and shock that we can express. To get a call like that at 4 a.m. to find out your brother was minding his own business, with three witnesses and pushed down the steps and left for dead,” Donna Falzone, the victim’s sister, said.

Bruke is scheduled to appear in court again on May 14, 2026.