OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
A Fox News weatherman was attacked and brutally beaten by several teens on a New York City subway while traveling home from a bar after watching a football game on Saturday after he tried to stop them from harassing an older rider.
Meteorologist Adam Klotz, 37, posted videos of his injuries on Instagram, appearing bruised about the eyes and face while also saying that he had visible injuries to his rib cage. He explained that the group of about six or seven teens set upon him and pummeled him to the ground after he implored them to stop bothering an older man, the New York Post reported.
Klotz said he was riding the train after watching the NFL’s New York Giants take a beating from the Philadelphia Eagles in Saturday night’s divisional playoff game when he saw “this older gentleman was being hassled by this group of seven or eight teens.”
“I was like, ‘Yo, guys, cut that out.’ And they decided, ‘All right, if he’s not going to get it, you’re going to get it.’ And boy did they give it to me,” Klotz explained. “They had me on the ground. My ribs are all bruised up, too. They got their hits in.”
The Post noted further:
Police sources said the meteorologist was on a No. 1 train around 1:15 a.m. when he confronted the teens, who may have been smoking weed at the time, too. The young suspects fled the train at the 18th Street station after the assault, but three of them — two 15-year-olds and a 17-year-old — were soon nabbed by cops, sources said. Police eventually cut the trio loose.
“Juvenile reports were prepared, and their parents were called to pick them up,” an NYPD spokesperson told the outlet early Sunday.
Fox News weatherman Adam Klotz beaten up by a gang of teenagers on NYC subway after telling them to stop hassling an elder man pic.twitter.com/PdXHq4zoOX
— Ronald Kelly (@RonK3l) January 23, 2023
ANARCHY IN NEW YORK CITY: @FoxNews weatherman Adam Klotz, 37, is beaten up by a gang of teenagers on NYC's crime-ridden subway after stepping in to help an older man they were harassing https://t.co/1gFIHPGeqG via @MailOnline
— Tom Fitton (@TomFitton) January 23, 2023
Klotz was treated for his injuries at Bellevue Hospital, according to the report. He has to file a complaint with the Department of Probation before the agency would be able to launch an investigation and get involved in any subsequent prosecutions. The Post added that the 17-year-old would have been able to be charged as an adult, but a 2019 law passed by the Democratic-controlled state raised the limit to 18 years old.
The meteorologist appeared jovial and even dismissive of the incident on his Instagram post.
“My side — don’t laugh — my side is so much worse than my face. And the thing is, the other guy is not really a guy. It’s children. Five or six children. Where are the parents?” he said. “Parents, watch your children.”
Regarding the man he defended, he said, “He’s fine.”
“And the cops grabbed a couple of these kids, and, you know, I got X-rays. I’m OK. This is all going to heal. So, it’s all good,” said the Indiana native, who added: “New York City! What a place. The Big Apple.”
Crime in New York City has been steadily rising for years, with critics blaming soft-on-crime policies and district attorneys for failing to crack down on offenders. The most recent indicator: Chase Bank will begin locking up many of its around-the-clock ATMs early “due to rising crime,” according to a separate report by The Post.
“Our apologies. We decide (sic) to close several ATM vestibules at 5 PM or 6 PM, aligning the hours of service to that of the normal branch hours, due to rising crime and vagrancy that occurred in these previously 24/7 vestibules,” Chase noted in a tweet last week.
Our apologies. We decide to close several ATM vestibules at 5PM or 6PM, aligning the hours of service to that of the normal branch hours, due to rising crime and vagrancy that occurred in these previously 24/7 vestibules. Send us a DM if you have other concerns or feedback. ^PE https://t.co/znUu1VJn9r
— Chase Support (@ChaseSupport) January 18, 2023
“For the safety of our customers and employees, we may temporarily close some ATMs overnight,” a Chase spokesperson told The Post, without addressing questions about the time and place of the lockdowns. “We can’t confirm how many ATMs are affected because it changes constantly.”
But the decision has angered many of the bank’s customers.
“Are you going to refund the ATM fees to customers when we get ripped off to use a bodega ATM to pay for our late-night slice of pizza because you can’t provide a basic service to account holders?” one of them tweeted in response to the announcement.
“Inconvenience an entire producing, working community but guarantee rights for criminals. Typical NYC politics & its results for the middle class that all you politicians falsely claim to champion,” another person wrote.
