The aunt of the victim who was killed by pinning him in front of a Manhattan train said she wanted to “rip out his heart” and used mental illness as an excuse when she confronted the suspected killer in court for the first time on Wednesday. he vehemently criticized. Random attack.
Christine Conte, 70, storms outside a Manhattan courtroom after subway snatcher Carlton McPherson pleads not guilty to murdering her nephew Jason Volz at an East Harlem subway station last month. did.
Asked by reporters about his first meeting with MacPherson, Conte enthused: “I wanted to jump out and rip his heart out and rip his heart out.”
A distraught woman who described herself as Volz’s “caretaker” screamed hysterically in the tense courtroom as McPherson was led away, muttering, “Why did you kill Jason?”
Court officials attempted to escort her away, apparently on orders from Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Curtis Farber.
One sergeant said, “If that’s what the judge asked, then you have to leave,” and eventually, after calming down, he allowed Conte and her son to stay.
McPherson, 24, did not flash the creepy smile he displayed after his arrest, but he sat quietly during his brief arraignment in Manhattan Supreme Court on a charge of second-degree murder.
MacPherson’s family, including her brother, who suffers from bipolar disorder, sat quietly on the other side of the courtroom and did not speak after the hearing.
After court, Mr Conte slammed the family’s claims of Mr MacPherson’s mental illness, claiming he was just an “evil person” and a “mother”.
“He’s just a mean person. He’s mean, he’s in trouble. Does that mean everyone who is sick needs medicine? I don’t think so,” Conte said. Ta.
“Why do they keep blaming everything on drugs and mental illness? No, there are a lot of people out there who want to hurt people. They’re just mean, they’re just demons. They’re I just want to hurt you.”
Her aunt previously told the paper that she had warned Volz in the days before the fatal incident not to ride the subway because of escalating violence underground.
Mr. Volz, 55, a native New Yorker whose father worked as a carpenter, was allegedly shoved by Mr. McPherson in front of the subway at the East 125th Street and Lexington Avenue station shortly before 7 p.m. on March 25. .
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg called it a “totally baseless act of violence” in a statement Wednesday and vowed to continue to hold accountable the attackers who targeted people on the subway.
“Mr. Volz was a father and a native New Yorker, and my heart goes out to his family and loved ones who are still grieving,” Bragg said. “We thank the prosecutors for their efforts in securing these charges. We will continue to do everything in our power to hold accountable those who threatened the safety of our fellow New Yorkers on the subway.”
McPherson’s attorney could not be reached for comment after his court appearance.
The judge continued Mr McPherson in custody and ordered him to return to court on August 12.
