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A 41-year-old Chicago Transit Authority janitor dies at Stroger Hospital after being stabbed in the neck while protecting a train operator who was maced at the Damen/Lake elevated platform.
A 41-year-old Chicago Transit Authority janitor died Thursday afternoon after being stabbed while attempting to protect a fellow transit worker.
The fatal altercation began shortly before 3:00 p.m. aboard a CTA Green Line train at the Damen/Lake station on the Near West Side.
Police sources report that an unknown male passenger sprayed a chemical agent directly into the face of a CTA train operator.
The janitor observed the violent confrontation inside the station mezzanine area and immediately stepped in to intervene.
A verbal argument broke out between the suspect and the intervening worker before quickly escalating into a physical struggle.
The suspect pulled out a sharp object and stabbed the 41-year-old janitor directly in the neck.
The attacker fled the scene on foot and ran westbound away from the elevated platform immediately following the stabbing.
Responding police officers located the injured janitor unresponsive in a nearby room inside the station complex.
Emergency medical crews rushed the victim to Stroger Hospital for emergency medical treatment.
Medical personnel at Stroger Hospital pronounced the 41-year-old janitor dead shortly after his arrival.
Chicago police officers secured the mezzanine and surrounding transit platform with yellow crime scene tape to preserve physical evidence.
CTA supervisors instructed Green Line trains to bypass the Damen/Lake station while law enforcement processed the homicide scene.
Transit officials deployed emergency shuttle buses between the California and Ashland stations to assist stranded commuters.
The CTA advised passengers to use the #50 Damen or #20 Madison bus lines as alternative travel options throughout the evening.
Area Three detectives launched an active homicide investigation and are conducting a canvass of local security camera footage to identify the suspect.
Law enforcement personnel confirmed that no suspect is currently in custody following the fatal attack.
