The suspect accused of shoving a man onto the subway tracks in Queens last week has been admitted to the psychiatric jail ward for women at Elmhurst Hospital. Erika Menendez, 31, told police she fatally shoved 46-year-old Sunando Sen into the path of a 7 train because she hates "Hindus and Muslims ever since 2001 when they put down the twin towers I’ve been beating them up.” A former boyfriend told the Daily News that Menendez has long hated Muslims: "She would say, ‘I can't stand being around these people,’" John Goelz said. "I kept telling her you can't blame every person you see."
Goelz, who dated Menendez nine years ago when they both attended Queensborough Community College, added: "That's probably why she did poorly in school,” added Goelz. “She was too busy focusing on the people in her class instead of her work." There have been several reports that Menendez has a violent history, and has had at least 14 run-ins with police over the last 12 years. One of those run-ins came when Menendez allegedly attacked Goelz after they got into an argument on April 21, 2003.
"I wanted to sign us up for some classes," Goelz said. "She wanted to go hang out with a guy and smoke weed. She thought that was more important. I said, 'Are you kidding me?'...She just all of a sudden snapped. She started ripping my face apart. She clawed my face apart." After police arrived, Goelz said Menendez tried to claim he hurt her, but they didn't buy it. The two broke up afterwards, but Goelz says Menendez called him a few months later claiming she'd given birth to a boy that was his. "I don't know if it was a lie or not," he said.
Menendez also allegedly attacked retired firefighter (and former neighbor) Daniel Conlis when he was taking out his trash one night in 2003: "She started charging at me," Conlisk told the News. "She started clawing me in the face." Officials haven't commented on Menendez's mental state, but her mother, Maricela Mera, allegedly told cops that her daughter has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder.
Goelz sounded surprised at the latest accusation against his ex: "I know she can be violent because she attacked me and punched me and scratched me, but for her to do that seems out if whack," he said. "She got crazy because of the relationship we had. For her to go off on a stranger, she'd have to have something mentally wrong to do that."
