METRO officer pushed onto train tracks, injured during struggle with man in north Houston

HOUSTON – An officer was sent to the hospital Friday after a 21-year-old man refused to show his paid fare stub, according to METRO police.

It all started when that officer asked to check Shiloh Santiago's ticket and I.D. According to investigators, the incident started shortly after 8 a.m.

Some sort of scuffle then broke out, and Santiago, 21, allegedly pushed the officer onto the train tracks below.

No trains were coming, and the officer managed to get off the tracks.

Santiago took off running, and a passersby helped tackle him, holding him down until more police arrived.

"He was lying there, then I turned around and they had a young man who was tall and skinny, in custody," witness Maria Hernandez said.

Hernandez owns a washateria on Fulton Street across from the Northline METRO station platform.

She said she saw the metro officer down and then saw police take Santiago into custody.

"EMS arrived and that's when they took the officer away," Hernandez said.

Investigators said the officer was alert and talking when he was in the ambulance. He was sent to Memorial Herman with non-life threatening injuries and is accepted to be OK.

Santiago was taken to the city jail.

No word yet on what charges he may face.