Jordan Neely Had History of Attacks on Subway Riders Before NYC Chokehold Death

Jordan Neely had a troubling history of violent attacks on straphangers in New York City before the disturbed man reportedly threatened passengers and Marine vet Daniel Penny allegedly put him in a fatal chokehold.

The 30-year-old vagrant, who once performed as a Michael Jackson impersonator, had been arrested dozens of times – including most recently for vicious assaults on subway riders, court records show.

In 2021, Neely socked a 67-year-old woman as she exited the Bowery station in the East Village in Lower Manhattan.

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Neely pleaded guilty to felony assault Feb. 9 in exchange for a 15-month alternative-to-incarceration program, according to the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office. He was supposed to stay in a treatment facility and abstain from drugs.

If he had completed the program, the felony assault would have been reduced to a misdemeanor, but he skipped a compliance court date and left the facility. A warrant was issued for his arrest on Feb. 23. {snip}

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From January 2020 to August 2021, he was arrested for public lewdness after pulling down his pants and exposing himself to a female stranger, misdemeanor assault for hitting a woman in the face, and criminal contempt for violating a restraining order. All three cases were dismissed as part of his Feb. 9 plea deal.

In June 2019, Neely attacked Filemon Castillo Baltazar, 68, on the platform of the W. 4th St. Station in Greenwich Village, according to the court papers.

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One month prior, he hit a man so hard in the face that he broke his nose on the platform of the Broadway-Lafayette station – the same subway stop where he died four years later.

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Outreach workers were so familiar with Neely that he was on the city’s “Top 50” list – an internal roster kept by the Department of Homeless Services of people living on the street who were most in need of help {snip}

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