BART operator punched after waking sleeping rider

A train waits in the station in Dublin, Calif. Explore the gallery to see how likely certain infractions are to be cited on BART. A train waits in the station in Dublin, Calif. Explore the gallery to see how likely certain infractions are to be cited on BART. Photo: Thomas Levinson, The Chronicle Photo: Thomas Levinson, The Chronicle Image 1 of / 20 Caption Close BART operator punched after waking sleeping rider 1 / 20 Back to Gallery

A man punched a BART operator when she roused him and asked him to get off an out-of-service train at the Dublin-Pleasanton station Tuesday night, BART police said.

The woman was sweeping the out-of-service train about 11:18 p.m. when she found the man, later identified as 30-year-old Myron Mixon, sleeping on board, according to BART Police.

When she asked him to get off, he punched her so hard she fell and hit her head, police said.

"The battery appears unprovoked," police wrote in a statement.

The operator positively identified her assailant before she was taken to a hospital for treatment for her injuries, according to police.

Mixon was allegedly issued a prohibition order and booked into Santa Rita Jail on suspicion of battery with injury on a transit worker.

Prohibition orders allow the agency to ban passengers who commit serious crimes on BART property for periods ranging from 30 days to one year, thanks to a 2013 law. BART police did not specify how long Mixon would be banned from BART property.

His bail was set at $25,000 and he is scheduled to be arraigned at 2 p.m. Thursday, county records indicate.

Filipa Ioannou is an SFGATE staff writer. Email her at fioannou@sfchronicle.com.