Wednesday 6 July 2022 10:27 PM Shocking moment Manhattan bodega worker stabs customer to death after the man ... trends now
Surveillance footage caught the shocking moment a New York City bodega worker stabbed a customer to death after the man allegedly confronted him about the price of some snacks.
Video shows the employee - who has been identified as 51-year-old Jose Alba - sitting behind a counter at the Hamilton Heights grocery store, tending to customers on Friday night.
A black man then pushed Alba into a shelf and appears to confront Alba, before yelling at another customer trying to purchase something.
He then pulls Alba up out of the chair, at which point Alba reaches to the right toward shelves displaying an assortment of candy, and pulls out a large knife, which he plunges into the man's neck and chest at least five times.
The two could be seen struggling off-camera as blood splatters across the victim's white t-shirt and along Alba's arms.
By the time he comes back into view, Alba could be seen holding the bloodied knife with blood splattered across his arm.
The customer, who was later identified as 37-year-old Austin Simon, meanwhile, was transported to Harlem Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Alba is now being charged with murder and criminal possession of a weapon. He faces 25 years to life in prison if convicted.
He is now being held on Rikers Island on a $250,000 bond, and is due back in court on Thursday.
In the meantime, local residents have rallied around Alba tweeting out the hashtag #FreeJoseAlba, as they claim he was acting in self-defense and say Simon was a known gang member.
Surveillance footage caught the moment Jose Alba, 51, a store clerk at a Hamilton Heights bodega stabbed 37-year-old Austin Simon after Simon pushed him into some shelves
According to the New York Police Department, the incident began at around 11pm on Friday after a woman entered the store with her 10-year-old daughter to buy several items.
But the woman's EBT card was declined, according to a criminal complaint obtained by the New York Daily News, and Alba reached over the counter to take the snacks away from the girl.
At that point, the Daily News reports, the woman became enraged and summoned Simon - her boyfriend.
'The lady threw everything from the counter and the machine too,' Maad Ahmad, the owner of the Blue Moon Convenient Store told the Daily News, referring to the card reader.
'She said, 'I'm going to get my man, and he's going to get you,'' he claimed.
Simon then walked around the counter and confronted Alba - leading to the confrontation caught on surveillance footage.
'He grabbed Jose by the neck and tried to get him to apologize to the girl,' Ahmad said, adding: 'He pushed Jose first, Jose was just defending himself.
'Jose said 'I
