Guardian Angel detains teen after he tried to 'surf' Metro train, threatened him

WASHINGTON - Public safety continues to be a focus for Metro and the past two days have brought more cases of trouble for the transit system.

The Guardian Angels have been patrolling the transit system for a while following a series of violent incidents in recent months in and around Metro.

On Thursday, the crime-fighting group told us for the first time this year, they detained a person at a Metro station for police.

"The main thing that we are trying to do is just to be of assistance to the police and make sure no one gets hurt," said Guardian Angels Commander Aaron Thompson. "I wasn't sure whether he had a gun or a knife."

He said it all started when he noticed a young man trying to surf a train at Gallery Place-Chinatown.

"I just observed the individual that was in a very dangerous position," said Thompson. "He put himself at risk by holding onto a train that was about to move and could have brought a lot of danger to himself as well as others."

Thompson said when he asked him to stop, the teenage rider threatened him.

"The guy said to me, 'You know what? You get on this train, I'm going to stab you,'" Thompson recalled. "At that point, I said it's time to get involved."

The Guardian Angels detained the young man until Metro Transit Police arrived and took him away.

Police were busy again Friday just after 1 p.m. when they said a large fight involving a group of teens started outside the Rhode Island Ave-Brentwood station and moved about a block up the street where a juvenile was stabbed.

Metro General Manager Paul Wiedefeld spoke to reporters on Wednesday and said there is much for the system to work on. But he also said it still has strengths too.

"We do 1.2 million passengers a day," he said. "That's pretty strong, right? Moving that many people?"

He added, "I think maybe we've lost a bit of the sense of pride in it with some issues we are facing, but we can regain that."

It is unknown if any arrests have been made in either incidents.

Police said the victim in the Rhode Island Avenue stabbing is expected to be okay.