In a shocking incident emerging out of Manhattan subway station, a 30-year-old homeless man Jordan Neely lost his life in a deadly chock by a Marine veteran. Medical examiners deem the death to be a homicide.
The harrowing episode is from Monday afternoon when Neely, a homeless man with a history of mental health issues, started ranting in an aggressive manner onboard.
A freelance journalist Juan Alberto Vazquez was at the scene and shared the gory details of the incident in a conversation with New York Post.
Sharing his account of that day, Vazquez said, “He starts to make a speech.” “He started screaming in an aggressive manner,” Vazquez said. “He said he had no food, he had no drink, that he was tired and doesn’t care if he goes to jail. He started screaming all these things, took off his jacket, a black jacket that he had, and threw it on the ground,” Vazquez added.
Triggered by the ranting the 24-year-old Marine veteran pushed Neely on the groud and held him in a deadly chokehold for about 15 minutes.
In about three minute and a half long video, journalist Vazquez recorded the incident.
At this point, the train was stopped and the doors were opened at the Broadway-Lafayette Street/Bleeker Street station.
The journalist said that the conductor had called 911 to report the incident. When the The Emergency Medical Services Workers arrived at the site of the incident, they tried to revive Neely but failed to do so.
Citing sources, reports said that the investigation is underway and an autopsy is awaited before any conclusion is reached.
“He moved his arms but he couldn’t express anything,” Vazquez said of Neely. “All he could do was move (his) arms.”
“Then suddenly he just stopped moving,” Vazquez recalled. “He was out of strength.”
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One passenger held the homeless guy in a headlock while the other kept him pushed on the floor.
“None of us who were there thought he was in danger of dying,” Vazquez said. “We thought he just passed out or ran out of air.” “I think that in one sense it’s fine that citizens want to jump in and help. But I think as heroes we have to use moderation,” he said.
“This would never have happened if the police had shown up within five minutes,” he added. “Then we’d be talking about a true hero. It’s complicated.”
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