Margaret Swan, Atlanta great grandmother stabbed to death on MARTA train in random attack by homeless man, John Elijah Matthews. Victim’s daughter, Shanae Sams blames security gaps, lax policing and a temporary free-fare policy for the tragedy while also claiming no one coming to the 66-year-old woman’s assistance.
A tragedy that could’ve been averted? A great grandmother was stabbed to death in a violent random attack over the weekend by a homeless man on Atlanta’s MARTA train system.
Margaret Swan, 66, was stabbed up to 18 to 20 times on the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority in an unprovoked attack by a knife-wielding assailant Saturday morning, cops said.
Swan was sitting alone on the train around 11:20 a.m., when John Elijah Matthews, 25, was caught on surveillance footage boarding and hovering over her before allegedly pulling out a knife and slitting her throat, according to a warrant obtained by 11Alive.
Victim‘s daughter claims no one coming to her mother’s assistance
The warrant further stated the victim and the suspect never communicating.
Swan — a mother of three, grandmother of five and great-grandmother of four – screamed and tried to escape, but the suspect allegedly held her down and stabbed her another 18 to 20 times before leaving her dead on the ground in a large pool of her own blood.
Shanae Sams, Swan’s daughter blamed security gaps, lax policing and a temporary free-fare policy on MARTA that allowed the suspect to kill her mother.
Sams further alleges no one coming to her mother’s aid.
‘She was screaming for help, and nobody was helping her,’ Sams told the nypost.
‘There’s no words that can explain how we feel right now. We are all lost, confused, angry and scared. It is just too much. Why was there no security? Why is nobody trying to prevent this from happening?’ the daughter said.
MARTA suspect identified as homeless man
After killing the helpless woman, Matthews hurled Swan’s lifeless body to the floor and stood over her as the train pulled into Oakland City Station, where he was arrested on the platform while still brandishing a knife.
According to Sams, Swan was a retired parent coordinator with Atlanta Public Schools. At the time of the tragedy, the 66-year-old was riding the train home, only to never make it.
‘It’s hard. My mom was the rock of our family , and now we don’t have that foundation.’ Sams said. ‘She was a very loving person. She would help anybody that she could. There wasn’t a bad bone in her body.’
Matthews, who was reportedly homeless, is being held at Fulton County Jail and faces one count of felony murder.
MARTA train stabbing: a preventable tragedy?
Riders also blamed Saturday’s killing on the recent fare-relief program that allowed people, including the homeless, to enter MARTA stations and trains for free during construction and the rollout of new fare gates systemwide, leaving some old gates and emergency doors temporarily open.
While MARTA reportedly required riders to resume paying fares on the same day as the deadly attack, customer Montanio Huff told Fox Atlanta that ‘more security’ is still needed as violence continues to pervade the commuter rail.
MARTA says it has 12,000 security cameras across rail stations, buses, and trains, along with a team of undercover officers patrolling stations.
MARTA is meanwhile focused on beefing up security ahead of the FIFA World Cup in Atlanta this month.
‘We’re enhancing those efforts for the FIFA World Cup, including more police, increased partnerships with local law enforcement agencies across the region, and additional personnel throughout the system to support customer safety and crowd management.
‘We will continue investing in the people, technology and partnerships that keep our riders and employees safe.’
