23-Apr-18 – A 13-inch chef’s knife came in handy for a restaurant worker when she was targeted by a would-be robber aboard a CTA train in the Loop last week, according to Chicago police.

The 20-year-old victim and a friend boarded the Red Line at Belmont at around 6:30 p.m. last Wednesday and both women immediately noticed fellow passenger Magdaleno Montoya. He stood out because he kept inching closer to them as the train traveled downtown and, notably, he was missing several fingers.

As the train doors opened at the Adams/Wabash stop, Montoya (left) grabbed the victim’s purse and violently tried to pull it away, said police. The purse’s leather strap frayed but did not break. As the struggle escalated, the woman reached into her bag and pulled out a 13-inch chef’s knife that she uses for restaurant work. She swiped Montoya’s hand, cutting one of his few remaining fingers, according to the police report.

Police found 57-year-old Montoya standing nearby on the train platform with blood coming from his hand. He was treated at Northwestern Memorial Hospital and released. Montoya is charged with felony attempted robbery and misdemeanor criminal damage to property for nearly breaking the woman’s purse strap. Circuit Court Judge David Navarro ordered him held without bail.