Man arrested in apparent unprovoked attack on woman at Alewife MBTA station

Police arrested a 53-year-old man Monday night in connection with an alleged assault at Alewife Station.

Alexandr Ivanenko, who has a homeless shelter listed as his residence, was arrested in Quincy and charged with aggravated assault related to the Monday morning incident in Cambridge, according to Transit police.

A 67-year-old woman told police she was walking alone at approximately 8:30 a.m. near the door of the main entrance to the MBTA station when she was assaulted.

A man, who was walking past her in the opposite direction, “suddenly and without provocation reached out and grabbed the woman by her neck and threw her to the ground” before walking away, police said in a statement.

The woman was transported to the hospital with injuries that were not life-threatening, according to police.

“It was extremely forceful,” a witness told WCVB NewsCenter 5. “She went down hard. He had this really aggressive look on his face. I kind of was taken aback, like: ‘Ooh, this guy seems angry.’ He just pushed her back, grabbed her by the neck and shoved her to the ground.

“There was blood on the floor and we were really worried about a potential concussion,” the witness continued. “She was trying to speak to us, but it was very jumbled.”

Police shared photos of the suspect in the attack on Monday, asking for law enforcement partners and the public to be on the lookout for him. Shortly before 9:30 p.m., police in Quincy located him in the 700 block of Hancock Street and handed him over to the MBTA Transit Police for booking.

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