Anthony Griffin rode the No. 7 train from Queens to Grand Central every morning, mixing Bible verses with freestyle verses. On April 15 he emerged from the platform armed with a machete and threatened commuters.

Police say Griffin swung the blade, slashing an 84‑year‑old man across the face on the Grand Central platform, then moved to the No. 6 platform where he cut a 65‑year‑old man and a 70‑year‑old woman. Despite pleas to drop the weapon, he claimed to be Lucifer before officers fired two shots that killed him.

Griffin’s history includes 13 arrests, 10 sealed, and a 2019 assault charge. After his mother’s death in 2021, he slipped into homelessness and the city’s shelter system, never receiving mental‑health placement. The incident highlights gaps in subway safety and the need for better identification of individuals in crisis.

The killing prompted Mayor Zohran Mamdani to praise police response and sparked debate over subway security. For investors, the event signals potential regulatory pressure on transit agencies to invest in safety tech and mental‑health resources, which could drive costs and reshape operational budgets across the city for the next decade and public confidence in the system.