Steve Buscemi’s Alleged Assailant Arrested And Charged In NYC

Courtesy NYPD

A man accused of randomly punching film and TV star Steve Buscemi has been arrested and charged, according to the New York Police.

NYPD identified the suspect as 50-year-old homeless man Clifton Williams. He is charged with second-degree assault. The crime is a class D felony and carries a possible sentence of seven years in prison. Assault in the second degree is also classified as a violent felony, and a judge is required to impose a minimum sentence of two years in prison.

The 66-year-old Buscemi was punched last week as he walked in the Kips Bay area of Manhattan. The Boardwalk Empire and Sopranos star sustained a black eye and bleeding in the May 8 ambush, police said.

Law enforcement sources said Williams changed his appearance and fled Manhattan as Buscemi was treated at a hospital.

Buscemi was the latest celebrity to suffer a random attack on New York City streets.

The broad-daylight attack is just one of the celebrity incidents that have happened over the last few years. Comic actor Rick Moranis, Michael Stuhlbarg (who was in the show Boardwalk Empire with Buscemi), and reality star Bethenny Frankel are among those similarly victimized.

Cops said the random attack on Buscemi happened around 11:48 a.m. on Wednesday in front of 369 Third Ave.

Witnesses told ABC’s New York affiliate that Buscemi, a former firefighter who visited Ground Zero in the wake of 9/11 to volunteer alongside his former battalion, chased after his attacker following the surprise attack. 

Buscemi has had a celebrated career. He has appeared in the films Fargo and Reservoir Dogs, and in the TV series Curb Your Enthusiasm, among many others.