New York Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez expressed outrage over the death of Jordan Neely following an incident on Monday in which he allegedly threatened subway riders.
Yet although Ocasio-Cortez insists that the homeless man was "murdered," a review of the evidence suggests that her entire story is fake.
She made the claim that Neely was a murder victim in a tweet that also labeled the man who is said to have choked him as a "murderer."
Jordan Neely was murdered.
But bc Jordan was houseless and crying for food in a time when the city is raising rents and stripping services to militarize itself while many in power demonize the poor, the murderer gets protected w/ passive headlines + no charges.
It’s disgusting. https://t.co/YJeQp9bbgE
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) May 3, 2023
Meanwhile, fellow Democratic lawmaker Ayanna Pressley cast the confrontation in racial terms, insisting that Neely was "lynched" while "having a mental health crisis."
He was 30 years old.
Black men deserve to grow old—not be lynched on a Subway because they were having a mental health crisis.
Jordan deserved better. Accountability now. pic.twitter.com/aX5qcryrbx
— Ayanna Pressley (@AyannaPressley) May 4, 2023
However, many find the suggestion that Neely was simply a harmless figure who was killed in cold blood difficult to believe given his history.
According to the New York Post, Neely was arrested on multiple occasions, sometimes for violent crimes, such as in November of 2021 when he was accused of punching a 67-year-old woman.
The Post pointed to charging documents which said she suffered a broken nose and fractured orbital bone along with "bruising, swelling and substantial pain to the back of her head."
What's more, the paper noted that Neely had an open arrest warrant at the time of his death although it is unclear what crime he was accused of.
Meanwhile, some Twitter users posted videos which purported to show Neely threatening violence and acting belligerently.
Here is Jordan Neely openly attacking the gay community, drag queens, and using homophobic slurs before physically assaulting a man.
Where do liberals go from here? pic.twitter.com/c5dSMXMwsS
— Amiri King (@AmiriKing) May 5, 2023
Conservative journalist Andy Ngo tweeted out a decade-old Reddit post in which a man who fits Neely's description was described behaving like "a maniac."
A post on Reddit from nine years ago warns the public about #JordanNeely. The man’s death after being restrained by passengers has ignited BLM rage because one of the passengers involved appears to be white. https://t.co/H2x7htqD8J pic.twitter.com/eHKarkHgj7
— Andy Ngô 🏳️🌈 (@MrAndyNgo) May 5, 2023