A woman was sexually assaulted on a Philadelphia train while other riders remained mute spectators

A woman was allegedly sexually assaulted on a transit train in Philadelphia, and onlookers failed to stop the incident.

The alleged rape occurred on the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority’s Market-Frankford Line on Wednesday night and was a “horrendous criminal act,” SEPTA said in a statement. The public transit authority said other people on the train saw the incident and did not alert authorities.

“There were other people on the train who witnessed this horrific act, and it may have been stopped sooner if a rider called 9ll,” said SEPTA. “SEPTA urges anyone who observes a crime being committed or any dangerous situation occurring to report it. Anyone witnessing an emergency should immediately call 9ll.”

SEPTA spokesperson Andrew Busch said an employee in the vicinity of the incident as the train went past called police to report that “something wasn’t right.”

Witnessing sexual assault can induce feelings of hopelessness and panic. A SEPTA employee boarded the train to witness an assault in progress and immediately reported it. The transit police were contacted and arrived shortly after, arresting the suspect.

The suspect was identified as Fiston M. Ngoy, 35, who had a preliminary arraignment last Thursday on charges of rape, sexual assault, aggravated indecent assault and more, reports CNN.

“Anybody that was on that train has to look in the mirror and ask why they didn’t intervene or why they didn’t do something,” Upper Darby Police Superintendent Timothy Bernhardt told CNN on Monday. “Collectively, they could have gotten together and done something.”

SEPTA Police Chief Thomas Nestel III said there were “very few” notifications about the incident, despite there being people on the train with phones in their hands who had witnessed the alleged rape. He said SEPTA police received one call and Philadelphia 911 got no calls, and he had yet to hear back from Delaware County 911.

A woman was raped and filmed by onlookers, who proceeded to capture it on their phones. In this world where everything is caught on videotape, it is more important than ever for people to step in and help those who are being assaulted.

When bystanders do nothing to help or stop the attack, it worries me.

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Written by Ruth Jane