Suspect can't remember pushing Ex onto subway tracks as metro approached

A 30-year-old man who allegedly pushed his ex onto the subway tracks at the Coohaven station in Rotterdam in the presence of their 3-year-old child in October says he "doesn't know exactly what happened anymore." Bystanders jumped on the rails and rescued the woman, 29, from the oncoming subway.

According to the Public Prosecution Service (OM), camera images show Javid A. taking a "run-up" and pushing his former lover. But A. said he "never wanted this." On Tuesday, his lawyer said that her client was shocked to see the recordings on which he recognized himself.

Initially, A. claimed at the police station that he wanted to "take his ex into his arms," but that she screamed and he was startled. He later retracted this statement. "Of course, he was also in shock at the time. He does not know exactly what happened. His brain blocked at that moment," his lawyer explained. 

According to the lawyer, it is not established that A. "was laughing when the woman was on the track." "There is only one witness who said that, and what is laughter? That could also be a reaction from nerves."

The suspect came to the Netherlands from France on October 25 to see his child. Although A. was previously convicted in France for assaulting the same woman, and their relationship was problematic, she gave permission for him to come to visit, according to the lawyer. That day would have gone without a hitch. A. allegedly followed the woman and child when they walked to the subway station to go to the city center. That's when the incident at Coolhaven happened.

The woman suffered bruises, but because the subway was approaching, the OM suspects the man of attempted manslaughter and aggravated assault. Witnesses rescued the woman, the OM said. Among them was a man with a broken leg, who threw away his crutches and jumped onto the track. 

The criminal trial against A. will be held on April 14. The OM had experts assess Javid A., an unwanted foreigner in both the Netherlands and France. "His violent behavior towards his ex raises so many questions that attempts have been made to find out more about him," the prosecutor said.