The much-hyped opening of Coney Island’s Luna Park closed on a far-from amusing note this past Memorial Day when a 17-year-old stabbed another teen just feet from the spanking new summertime entertainment spot.
Police said that Christopher Acosta was charged with assault in the first degree, menacing and criminal possession of a weapon after he allegedly jammed a knife into his victim’s stomach during a May 31 clash near the Riegalmann Boardwalk entrance of the new amusement park at West 10th Street.
Sources said that the two men were fighting over Acosta’s sister, who was apparently groped on the Boardwalk, just before the assault at 3:10 pm.
Acosta’s sister claimed that the other teen had grabbed her buttocks.
Enraged, Acosta began arguing with the young man, then pulled a knife and lunged.
Widespread panic erupted when the victim fell to the ground with a stab wound to the side.
“I saw [the victim] stagger in off the boardwalk and fall down, and a crowd grew around him,” a park security guard told the New York Post. “Mothers were holding their kids back, and they all looked shocked and concerned.”
Cops patrolling the area immediately swooped in and grabbed Acosta, who professed his innocence as he was carted away in handcuffs, according to police.
Acosta had not been arraigned by late Tuesday afternoon.
Yet in the end the bloody scene did little to dampen Luna Park’s debut. A spokesman said that last weekend’s opening “far exceeded expectations” with 40,000 runs logged on the 19 new rides Saturday and Sunday.