Victims suffered brain and throat injuries in NJ Transit concourse knife attack

🔴 A New Jersey man faces seven attempted murder counts after a Penn Station knife attack.

⚠️ Court records detail severe injuries, including a skull puncture and traumatic brain injury.

➡️ Investigators say two additional victims were attacked but have not been identified.

NEW YORK — New court documents reveal the chilling details of a knife attack at Penn Station's NJ Transit concourse.

Hector Deleon, 51, was arraigned in Manhattan last week. The New Jersey man is charged with seven counts of attempted murder, one count of assault, six counts of attempted assault, and four counts of assault.

"This was a terrifying attack in the middle of Penn Station during an incredibly busy time in New York City. We will pursue accountability in this matter and continue to prioritize preventing these types of random and violent incidents from occurring in the first place," Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said.

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His defense attorneys have requested a mental health evaluation, according to Manhattan District Attorney's Office spokesperson Doug Cohen. Deleon is being held until the next court date, which is scheduled for June 29.

Hector Deleon mugshots from 2022 (Essex County Jail)

Attack lasted less than two minutes in crowded Penn Station

The attack on Sunday, June 7, began at 6:59 and lasted fewer than two minutes, according to an Amtrak police officer who reviewed surveillance video. The same officer was among the cops who confronted and arrested the suspect, identified as Deleon.

The officer's report includes new details, including that there are more victims out there. Five male victims were hospitalized. Police now say two more victims, one man and one woman, were attacked, but they have not yet been identified.

(Adam Gray, Getty Images)

Victims suffered devastating head and throat injuries

Police said one victim was stabbed in the head. The weapon pierced his skull at the left temple and hit his temporal lobe. He suffered a cerebral hemorrhage and traumatic brain injury. Another victim needed two surgeries after he was also stabbed near his left eye.

Two other victims were stabbed in the throat. One needed six stitches; the second needed three stitches and still has trouble swallowing. A fifth victim was sliced with the knife and suffered a large cut along his right cheek.

Police said they don't know how badly the newly revealed sixth and seventh victims were hurt because it appears they never spoke with investigators. Deleon is accused of stabbing at a sixth man's throat and at a woman's abdomen.

Newark stabbing case predates Penn Station attack

This is not the first time Deleon has been accused of a knife attack.

In 2022, Deleon was charged with stabbing a man in the throat in Newark. At the time, Deleon was living at a public housing complex on Frelinghuysen Avenue in Newark. The stabbing happened along the same street in the parking lot of a place where the victim worked.

READ MORE: Penn Station stabbing suspect has violent NJ record

Investigators said the victim told Deleon that he wasn't allowed on the property because he kept stealing things. The victim needed nine stitches after he was attacked.

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