Man arrested for allegedly punching actor Steve Buscemi in the face

Actor Steve Buscemi was attacked last week. Photo / AP

A man has been arrested for allegedly punching Steve Buscemi in the face.

The Reservoir Dogs actor was wandering through the East Side of Manhattan last Wednesday when he was “assaulted” and left with a swollen face in a random attack, and now the New York Police Department (NYPD) have confirmed they have taken 50-year-old Clifton Williams into custody.

The homeless man was arrested on Friday and charged with second-degree assault - which is punishable by up to seven years in prison - and a police spokesperson told the New York Times newspaper the charge was elevated to a felony because of the 66-year-old actor’s age.

He is also accused of having punched a 22-year-old man around 15 minutes before the Boardwalk Empire actor was attacked, and has been charged with third degree assault, a misdemeanour, in that case.

Police had identified Williams as a suspect earlier in the week after releasing surveillance photos of him, and when they were called to a dispute between him and another man on Friday, they recognised him and arrested him.

Following the attack on Buscemi, the Fargo star was taken to hospital for bleeding, bruising and swelling to his left eye.

His publicist said in a statement at the time: “Steve Buscemi was assaulted in Midtown Manhattan, another victim of a random act of violence in the city.

“He is okay and appreciates everyone’s well wishes, though incredibly sad for everyone that this has happened to while also walking the streets of NY.”

The incident came just two months after Buscemi’s Boardwalk Empire co-star Michael Stuhlbarg, 55, was attacked by a homeless man who lobbed a rock at him in Central Park in March.

Xavier Israel, 27, was taken into custody after he caused injury to the back of his neck.

The same month, Bethenny Frankel was punched in the face in a separate incident.

The 53-year-old reality star noticed a video posted on social media by fashion design student Mikayla Toninato about her experience of being assaulted in the Big Apple and took to the comments to reveal that the same thing had happened to her.

She wrote on TikTok: “This is insane bc this happened to me a few months ago but I was embarrassed to say I was on the UWS [Upper West Side]. Insane. I was taking video of a bakery. (sic)”