Federal charges have been filed against Decatur resident John Elijah Matthews on Tuesday after he allegedly killed a 66-year-old woman aboard a MARTA train last weekend.
Matthews, 25, faces a charge of committing an act of violence using a dangerous weapon with the intent to cause death on a mass transportation system after a May 30 attack on a fellow passenger, 66-year-old Margaret Swan.
Swan was on a MARTA train traveling northbound from the Lakewood station to the Oakland City station when she encountered the defendant, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia.
Video surveillance allegedly showed Matthews standing next to Swan by the train’s doors while the latter looked at her phone. At approximately 11:25 a.m., Matthews then reached into his pocket, pulled out a folding knife and proceeded to stab Swan approximately 20 times in the chest and neck area.
Other passengers fled for safety and called for help as Swan tried to defend herself, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. One witness told police that Swan and Matthews had no prior interactions with each other before the incident.
After the train stopped at the Oakland City station, MARTA police officers immediately detained and arrested a blood-soaked Matthews, who they say was allegedly still in possession of a bloody folding knife similar to what had been seen in surveillance footage.
First responders arrived to render emergency medical aid to Swan, who was later pronounced dead on the scene.
“Margaret Swan was a beloved great-grandmother who was brutally killed in an unprovoked act of senseless violence. Her loss deeply affects her family, friends, and our entire community,” said U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg in a Tuesday press release.
“My hope is these charges will bring justice for her and her family,” added Marlo Graham, special agent in charge of the FBI’s Atlanta office. “This crime also impacts everyone who relies on mass transportation to move about their daily lives. Using Atlanta’s train system should be safe and free of violence.”
The FBI and MARTA police are investigating the case.
Matthews is currently in local custody and is scheduled to appear in federal court at a later date. If convicted, he faces the possibility of life imprisonment or the death penalty.
