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A pair of lovebirds facing life as jailbirds were arraigned Sunday on charges they capped a boozy date by stomping a would-be good Samaritan to death in the street.
Quintin Guerrero, 61, was killed when he rushed to aid one of his accused attackers, Tosheba Alford, 20, after she jumped out of a moving cab in front of his Bronx house to escape a beating from her boyfriend, Alford's mother, Queen Smith, said.
Alford told cops she never raised a hand to man who tried to help her, insisting she attempted to stop her boyfriend, Kendall Major, 35, from killing Guerrero.
"He [Major] started punching and kicking the man. I tried to pull Kendall off," Alford told detectives, according to a prosecutor.
Witnesses, including the cabbie who drove the pair to the Bronx, claimed Alford was as responsible as Major for the 1:30 a.m. Saturday beatdown in Mott Haven.
"It was very horrifying to see," said livery cab driver Angel Ruiz, 47, who called 911 and helped cops track down the pair.
Major and Alford were arraigned Sunday in Bronx Supreme Court on second-degree murder charges.
They were ordered held without bail, pending an April 28 grand jury hearing.
The couple, who had spent the evening drinking heavily, were headed to Major's house in the Bronx when they started fighting in the back of Ruiz's livery cab, Smith said.
She told reporters her daughter called her from the cab when Major started hitting her, accusing her of having an incestuous relationship with her brother.
Smith said her daughter jumped out of the moving cab, hurting her leg. She limped over and sat down on Guerrero's front stoop, prompting the victim to come out of his house and check on her.
As Guerrero was asking Alford if she was hurt, Major jumped out of the cab, pummeled Guerrero to the ground and kicked him repeatedly, Alford told her mother.
"She'd never put a foot on anyone," Smith said of her daughter.
Prosecutors scoffed at Major's statement that Guerrero hit him first and told him to "mind your own business."
Meanwhile, Ruiz was praised as a hero Sunday by his colleagues at the New York State Federation of Taxi Drivers, who awarded him with a $500 check and a bullet proof vest for helping cops nab the killers.
"A lot of drivers don't like to get involved, but I don't mind being involved," said Ruiz. "If more drivers would get involved the streets might be a little be safer.
Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/ny_c...#ixzz1Kg3ANZ6q
While this is a horrible story, it is also what may happen if citizens stand up against thuggery. It was very heroic what that man did. Unfortunately, he paid with his life. So, I guess what I am getting at is that I wish more citizens would play an active role in keeping society safe. But, then I read stories like this and I am unsure as a civilian myself, whether it is the best thing to do. I guess it is a double edged sword. I have been in a situation similar to this and I think about what could have happened to me. What I mean is that I intervened.
Quintin Guerrero, 61, was killed when he rushed to aid one of his accused attackers, Tosheba Alford, 20, after she jumped out of a moving cab in front of his Bronx house to escape a beating from her boyfriend, Alford's mother, Queen Smith, said.
Alford told cops she never raised a hand to man who tried to help her, insisting she attempted to stop her boyfriend, Kendall Major, 35, from killing Guerrero.
"He [Major] started punching and kicking the man. I tried to pull Kendall off," Alford told detectives, according to a prosecutor.
Witnesses, including the cabbie who drove the pair to the Bronx, claimed Alford was as responsible as Major for the 1:30 a.m. Saturday beatdown in Mott Haven.
"It was very horrifying to see," said livery cab driver Angel Ruiz, 47, who called 911 and helped cops track down the pair.
Major and Alford were arraigned Sunday in Bronx Supreme Court on second-degree murder charges.
They were ordered held without bail, pending an April 28 grand jury hearing.
The couple, who had spent the evening drinking heavily, were headed to Major's house in the Bronx when they started fighting in the back of Ruiz's livery cab, Smith said.
She told reporters her daughter called her from the cab when Major started hitting her, accusing her of having an incestuous relationship with her brother.
Smith said her daughter jumped out of the moving cab, hurting her leg. She limped over and sat down on Guerrero's front stoop, prompting the victim to come out of his house and check on her.
As Guerrero was asking Alford if she was hurt, Major jumped out of the cab, pummeled Guerrero to the ground and kicked him repeatedly, Alford told her mother.
"She'd never put a foot on anyone," Smith said of her daughter.
Prosecutors scoffed at Major's statement that Guerrero hit him first and told him to "mind your own business."
Meanwhile, Ruiz was praised as a hero Sunday by his colleagues at the New York State Federation of Taxi Drivers, who awarded him with a $500 check and a bullet proof vest for helping cops nab the killers.
"A lot of drivers don't like to get involved, but I don't mind being involved," said Ruiz. "If more drivers would get involved the streets might be a little be safer.
Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/ny_c...#ixzz1Kg3ANZ6q
While this is a horrible story, it is also what may happen if citizens stand up against thuggery. It was very heroic what that man did. Unfortunately, he paid with his life. So, I guess what I am getting at is that I wish more citizens would play an active role in keeping society safe. But, then I read stories like this and I am unsure as a civilian myself, whether it is the best thing to do. I guess it is a double edged sword. I have been in a situation similar to this and I think about what could have happened to me. What I mean is that I intervened.
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