Marine veteran Daniel Penny’s lawyer slams ‘very confounding’ decision to allow six migrants who assaulted NYPD cops to walk free – as his client still faces manslaughter charges for Jordan Neely’s chokehold death where he ‘stepped in to save lives’
The attorney for Navy veteran Daniel Penny has rejected the decision to let six migrants who attacked NYPD officers in Times Square on Saturday walk free without bail.
Thomas Kenniff, who is representing Penny as he faces manslaughter charges over the shocking death of an unruly subway passenger last year, called the decision “very confusing.”
A total of six migrants have been charged since Saturday’s attack on police, but five of them have been released without bail. A seventh suspect was arrested but released due to lack of evidence, police said.
“The primary purpose of bail is to ensure that people return to court… from what I understand, they appear to have minimal, if any, ties to New York City,” Kenniff shared. Fox News digital.
He added: “Anyone who is willing to resist arrest – or worse, assault a police officer – indicates someone who has no respect for the justice system, making them even less likely to return to justice. So if ever there was a situation where bail is appropriate, this seems to be the case.”
Navy veteran Daniel Penny’s attorney, Thomas Kenniff, has rejected the decision to release without bail five migrants who attacked NYPD officers in Times Square on Saturday
Kenniff represents Penny as he faces manslaughter charges for the shocking death of an unruly subway passenger
The brutal attack happened Saturday around 8:30 p.m. when officers tried to disperse a disorderly group in front of 220 West 42 Street.
According to the NYPD, the migrants then began attacking the officers, kicking them in the head and body, while the two officers attempted to pin one of the other men down and remove his sweatshirt.
The migrants then ran away and fled east on 42nd Street toward Seventh Avenue.
That night, four of them were arrested: Darwin Andres Gomez Izquiel, 19, Kelvin Servat Arocha, 19, Wilson Juarez, 21, and Yorman Reveron, 24.
They were all charged with assault on a police officer, gang assault, obstruction of governmental administration and disorderly conduct, but were released without bail.
Reveron also has two active cases in the city for assault and theft after stealing and assaulting a Nordstrom Rack employee in November.
Darwin Andres Gomez (left) and Kelvin Servita Arocha were also released without bail
Jhoan Boada (pictured), 22, was arrested on Monday evening and charged with attempted assault on a police officer and gang assault
Jhoan Boada (pictured), 22, was arrested on Monday evening and charged with attempted assault on a police officer and gang assault
As he left the courthouse, the 22-year-old raised his middle finger at reporters
Police now fear the four men may have boarded a bus to leave the city before their court hearing. They are believed to have given false names to a church-affiliated nonprofit that helps migrants get rides out of the city, law enforcement sources told the Post.
Jhoan Boada, 22, was arrested Monday evening and charged with attempted assault on a police officer and gang assault. He is reportedly in the country illegally and listed as homeless. He was filmed turning the bird towards reporters after it was released on Wednesday.
Yohenry Brito, 24, was charged Thursday. He is the only suspect held since Friday after his bail was set at $15,000 cash.
The district attorney’s office said this was because, unlike the other suspects, he had a tattoo that made his identification more reliable.
Yohenry Brito, 24, was arraigned Thursday in Manhattan Criminal Court and is the only one of the suspects being held on bail
Six men were arrested Wednesday and charged with robbery and assault following the Times Square attack on police
New York Governor Kathy Hochul has said the state should consider deporting the group of migrants.
“Take them all and send them back,” Hochul told reporters at an unrelated news conference, the New York Post reported.
You don’t touch our police officers. You don’t touch anyone.’ Hochul, she added.
Police sources confirmed the men’s migrant status to the New York Post. Several of the men’s addresses given by police are homeless and migrant shelters.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams has repeatedly pointed to the justice system’s current practice of “catch, release, repeat” as one of the leading causes of crime in New York City.
Over the summer, Adams accused the city’s criminal justice system of making the Big Apple “the laughing stock of our entire country.”
New York City in particular has struggled under the weight of tens of thousands of migrants arriving at its borders in need of places to stay and other accommodations.
In 2023 alone, the city had to deal with the arrival of more than 100,000 migrants.
Hochul once welcomed asylum seekers with “open arms” and promised to house them, but is now starting to let migrants “go elsewhere” because the city is on the border.