Columbus Circle Tourist Stabbing: NYPD Releases Suspect's Photo After Random Attack

COLUMBUS CIRCLE, NY — The NYPD released photos of a man wanted in connection with the seemingly random stabbing of a 23-year-old tourist in Columbus Circle, police told Patch.

The victim was taking a photograph shortly before 1:30 p.m. Sunday when he was approached by an unknown man who pulled out a sharp object and stabbed him once in the back, police told Patch.

The 23-year-old was taken to Cornell Hospital in stable condition, police said. The victim, Marcus Martins Machado of Brazil, told the Daily News that he was staying in New York City on a layover for a planned trip to Rome.

"I'm so nervous and sad with this accident," Machado told the Daily News from a hospital bed. "I was only a few hours in the United States. The situation is so sad for me."

The suspect (pictured above) is a man who stands around 6-feet-tall and has blonde hair, police told Patch. At the time of the stabbing he was wearing a dark green long sleeve sweater, dark green pants, a dark colored backpack and a baseball hat, police said.

Anyone with information is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477).

Photo by NYPD