Socialites… get into this disturbing story. A 24-year-old passenger on the northbound F train in New York reportedly held a black homeless man in a chokehold for 15 MINUTES after he “aggressively” ranted about having no food or drink. The incident, per the police report, took place on Monday afternoon at the Broadway-Lafayette station when Jordan Neely made a speech addressing other commuters on the train.
Juan Alberto Vazquez, who was one of the witnesses, revealed, “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.” Sources say Neely had allegedly shown threatening behavior towards people on the train, which is when the 24-year-old, a former US Marine whose identity has to be revealed, put Neely in a chokehold for 15 minutes.
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Somewhere during this time, Neely lost consciousness, and though paramedics were rushed to the scene, he was pronounced dead shortly after. The blonde-haired man was reportedly taken into custody, according to the New York Post, but was later released without charges. The investigation remains ongoing as an autopsy is being performed before a decision will be made on whether the former Marine should face charges or not.
“I am not interested in answering any questions, thank you,” he told the aforementioned news outlet.
“He moved his arms but he couldn’t express anything,” Vazquez, who was on the train and recorded the shocking incident on the train, continued to explain. “All he could do was move his arms. Then suddenly he just stopped moving. He was out of strength.”
“None of us who were there thought he was in danger of dying,” he added. “We thought he just passed out or ran out of air.”
What’s more, people on the train said that Neely had not attacked anyone during his supposed rant on the train, which made his passing all the more difficult to comprehend.
Even before he was taken down and put in a chokehold, Neely had not touched or hurt any of the passengers, so the debate surrounding his passing is whether or not the former Marine should be held accountable and charged for his death given the circumstances.
“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,” Vazquez added. “This would never have happened if the police had shown up within five minutes. Then we’d be talking about a true hero. It’s complicated.”