Steve Buscemi Alleged Attacker Arrested and Charged in NYC

Steve Buscemi

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A suspect in the Steve Buscemi attacker case was arrested and charged in New York City on Friday, according to the New York Police Department.

Clifton Williams, a 50-year-old houseless man, has been charged with assault in the second degree after he allegedly punched the actor in the face randomly in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of Kips Bay.

On May 8, the NYPD responded to a 911 call of an assault on Third Avenue within the 13th precinct, where a 66-year-old man had been punched and was later transported to Bellevue Hospital in stable condition. He was treated for a minor injury in his left eye.

Police sources told CBS New York that Williams walked into the 10th precinct in the Chelsea neighborhood on May 13 to report that his property had been stolen on the Friday prior. The officers who took his ID recognized him and arrested him for Buscemi’s attack.

Williams is facing two counts of assaults, according to the news outlet. One is a misdemeanor for allegedly randomly punching another man a few minutes before he allegedly punched The Sopranos actor. However, because Buscemi is 66, he is seen as a senior citizen in the eyes of the law. Therefore, Williams’ charges were upped to a felony in that case but not the other.

Following the attack news, the actor’s publicist released a statement, confirming he had been attacked but was OK.

“Steve Buscemi was assaulted in Midtown Manhattan, another victim of a random act of violence in the city,” his publicist said in a statement. “He is OK and appreciates everyone’s well wishes, though incredibly sad for everyone that this has happened to while also walking the streets of N.Y.”

Buscemi is the latest celebrity to be randomly attacked in New York. His Boardwalk Empire co-star, Michael Stuhlbarg, was hit in the back of the neck with a rock in March. In the last few years, Rick Moranis and Bethenny Frankel have also been victims of random attacks in the city.