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| Estep (inset) was captured on CTA surveillance cameras moments before the attack, police said. | Chicago Police |
A 34-year-old man who recently received his doctorate in neuroscience from Northwestern University is accused of intentionally pushing a complete stranger off of a Loop CTA platform in August and threatening the victim as he tried to off of the tracks.
Chad Estep of Wicker Park is charged with one felony count of first degree attempted murder, one felony count of aggravated battery in a public place, and misdemeanor trespassing on CTA property. A judge set his bail at $200,000 this afternoon.
Estep was arrested at his home Monday evening after being positively identified as the man who pushed a 46-year-old male victim onto the Washington Blue Line tracks around 11:30 p.m. on August 1.
The victim told the Chicago Tribune that he landed just short of the electrified third rail. When he turned around to get back onto the platform, he saw Estes standing over him “like a lion looking at his prey.”
Estep was identified by several people, and cellular records showed his phone was in the Washington CTA station at the time of the attack, according to prosecutors.
Police said that there was no evidence that the two men knew each other before the incident.
