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A homeless man who sucker-punched legendary comedian Rick Moranis in New York City in late 2020 pleaded guilty to felony assault charges Tuesday.
Marquis Ventura, 37, has been promised a sentence of two years in state prison after he pleaded guilty to assault in the 2nd degree, as well as six additional charges pertaining to four additional victims: Attempted assault in the 2nd degree, petit larceny, and four counts of assault in the 3rd degree, according to the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office.
Ventura had initially denied the charges but changed his plea to guilty in Manhattan Supreme Court on Tuesday.
Sentencing is set for August 23.
The man is also accused of randomly attacking other strangers in 2020, including the owner of a liquor store in the Soho neighborhood of Manhattan before stealing a bottle of champagne.
Ventura, who has been arrested more than 13 times, is a suspect in multiple other unprovoked attacks on people in New York City.
Marquis Ventura, who sucker-punched legendary comedian Rick Moranis in New York City in 2020, pleaded guilty to felony assault charges Tuesday
Marquis Ventura, 37, has been promised a sentence of two years in state prison after he pleaded guilty to assault in the 2nd Degree, as well as six additional charges pertaining to four additional victims
Ventura pleaded guilty to attempted assault in the 2nd degree, petit larceny, and four counts of assault in the 3rd degree, according to the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office
Ventura had initially denied the charges but changed his plea to guilty in Manhattan Supreme Court on Tuesday
Ventura is alleged to have punched actor Rick Moranis in an unprovoked attack in late 2020 that was captured in surveillance video
Ventura admitted to punching actor Rick Moranis in an unprovoked attack on October 1, 2020, that was captured in surveillance video.
The horrifying footage shows Moranis, then-67, who is 5ft 6in walking southbound on Central Park West near West 70th Street at about 7:30am.
Suddenly, an unidentified man walking past the star strikes him in the head, knocking Moranis to the ground.
Ventura was arrested by a transit cop at the 96th Street and Broadway subway station. Of Ventura’s 13 arrests, five include felonies.
While the unprovoked attack was caught on video, other nearby surveillance cameras also managed to catch images of the suspect.
Rick Moranis, 69, was walking on New York City’s Upper West Side on Thursday around 7:30am when he was attacked. Surveillance footage captures a stranger walking past him abruptly punching Moranis in the head, knocking him to the ground (left and right)
Ventura was arrested by a transit cop at the 96th Street and Broadway subway station. He has a history of 13 arrests – including five for felonies
While the unprovoked attack was caught on video, other nearby surveillance cameras also managed to catch images of the suspect
The attack caused Moranis to suffer pain in his head, back and right hip.
The ex-convict has also been accused of randomly attacking other strangers last year, including the owner of a liquor store in the Soho neighborhood of Manhattan before stealing a bottle of champagne.
Last year, Justice Diane Kiesel said that Ventura has refused two attempts to get him to submit to a psychiatric examination to determine if he is mentally able to stand trial, the New York Post reported.
Moranis, who was born in Toronto, Canada, secured his big break when he appeared in the 1983 film Strange Brew.
He then appeared in a string of commercially successful films including Ghostbusters in 1984, Spaceballs in 1987, and two films in 1989, Ghostbusters II and Honey, I Shrunk the Kids.
Moranis, who was born in Toronto, Canada, secured his big break when he appeared in the 1983 film Strange Brew. Pictured: Moranis at an unknown location, May 1994
Rick Moranis and his man-eating plant in the 1986 film, ‘Little Shop of Horrors’
Rick Moranis and Marcia Strassman in the 1989 Disney film, ‘Honey, I Shrunk The Kids’
Sigourney Weaver and Rick Moranis in the 1984 science-fiction comedy ‘Ghostbusters’
The original Honey, I Shrunk the Kids was so successful that Moranis returned for sequel Honey, I Blew Up The Kid in 1992.
He completed the trilogy with straight-to-video sequel Honey, We Shrunk Ourselves in 1997 which was his last on-camera role before his hiatus.
Moranis has largely remained out of the spotlight since, only doing voicework for a few animated projects including the 2003 film Brother Bear and TV series The Animated Adventures Of Bob & Doug McKenzie.
He said he made the decision to step away to focus on being a single father to his children, Rachel and Mitchell, after losing his wife, costume designer Ann Belsky, to breast cancer in February 1991.
He told USA Today: ‘As a single parent and I just found that it was too difficult to manage to raise my kids and to do the traveling involved in making movies.
‘So I took a little bit of a break. And the little bit of a break turned into a longer break, and then I found that I really didn’t miss it.’