‘THE CRAZIES ARE OUT:’ TTC passenger warns other women to stay alert after subway scare

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Man or woman, young or old, the sketchiness of the TTC doesn’t discriminate.

One Torontonian is warning other women after a recent harrowing experience on the subway sent her running for safety.

“If you are a girl in Toronto riding public transit with your headphones in, go ahead and take them out right now because let me tell you what the f*** just happened to me,” an agitated Veronica Skaia began her video shared on TikTok and viewed more than five million times.

Skaia, a social media manager once featured in the Toronto Star, explained from Yonge-Dundas Square that she had just been on the train for four stops but that was enough time for someone to target her.

“I’m getting off at Dundas Station, I go to the doors, I’m about to get off the f***ing subway, and then I feel like this guy walk past behind me, and he’s like mumbling under his breath,” she said.

Skaia explained that while the man was still behind her, she passed two 6-foot-tall men who moved out of the way — which she took as a sign to “pay attention” to her surroundings, particularly the guy on her tail.

That’s when she said she could feel the breath of the mumbling man behind her say, “I think I found someone to …” and she mouths the word “murder.”

Her response was to book it, naturally.

“The way I ran out of the TTC,” she said. “Girlies in Toronto, stay f***ing safe because the crazies are really out.”

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Toronto residents flooded the comments section with similar stories of scary incidents like near stabbings, kidnappings and other forms of violence.

Some thought having headphones in as a prop was a good idea to avoid talking to people, while others advised to never have them in so you are always aware of your surroundings.

Others also reminded people to keep your phone fully charged, while many said they simply avoid the TTC in favour of ride shares because their safety is priceless.

Last June, the TTC released a report showing that while safety measures were working and security incidents involving passengers were decreasing, satisfaction with personal safety was still down.

Earlier this month, a 52-year-old man was stabbed at Wilson Station following an altercation with two youths. The suspects, a 14-year-old girl charged with a previous murder and a 17-year-old boy, have since been arrested but TTC riders remain uneasy and on guard.

“Haven’t taken the subway in months and will continue not to,” one TikToker commented.