A Brooklyn man who was stripped naked and beaten by a gang after getting off a bus was actually the perpetrator of the incident, attorneys say.
Walter Ward, 26, originally appeared to be the victim of the violent January 22 attack at a Chinatown bus depot at Canal and Allen Streets that left him bloodied
But attorneys and another bus passenger say that Ward had actually robbed 20-year-old Jahi Nimmons at gunpoint hours before, reported the New York Daily News.
They add that when the group of 13 pounced on him, they were getting revenge.
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Walter Ward, 26 (blurred), who has an extensive criminal history, was beaten in Manhattan by a group of 13 on January 22 after getting off a bus from Atlanta
Attorneys say the group was getting revenge after Ward (blurred) robbed 20-year-old Jahi Nimmons at gunpoint
During a bus ride from Atlanta, Ward stole Nimmons’ coat, watch, sneakers and two cellphones. Pictured: Nimmons’ grandmother during a press conference on Friday
According to Nimmom’s attorney, Kevin McCall, the incident occurred during a 14-hour overnight bus ride from Atlanta to New York City.
McCall says Ward pointed a gun at Nimmons and demand he hand over multiple items including an Apple Watch, two cellphones and Yeezy sneakers worth more than $1,000.
‘And as he was sitting on the bus, he was in fear of his life,’ McCall said during a press conference on Friday.
A 20-year-old passenger going by just the name of Relley appeared to back up McCall’s claims, according to the New York Daily News.
Relley said he got on the bus in Charlotte and found Nimmons wearing very few articles of clothing.
‘[Nimmons] didn’t have no shoes, no coat, no jeans. I’m looking like: ‘What the f**k?” Relley told newspaper.
‘Little homie was shaking. He said, ‘Don’t f**k with him [Ward]. He just robbed me.’
Nimmons allegedly asked Relley to borrow his phone, and used it to text family members, asking them to meet him at the bus stop in New York.
Relley eventually relented and allowed Nimmons to use his phone to call family. He was one of four people who lent their phones to the robbery victim.
Nimmons’ grandmother, Cassandra Nimmons, said she received multiple text messages from her grandson from multiple phone numbers.
Nimmons managed to text his grandmother what happened from another passenger’s phone, and his relatives met him at the bus depot . Pictured: Ward being attacked
In addition to beating the victim, the suspects also robbed him of his phone and clothing
The beating took place near the intersection of Canal and Allen streets in Chinatown
‘He (Jahi) said that if the cops were here in New York, he (Ward) said, ‘I’m killing your whole family, I have your ID right here.’ I was so afraid I thought they were going to kill him,’ Cassandra said Friday outside the 5th Precinct.
When the bus arrived, Nimmons’ relatives were ready to attack Ward as soon as he exited.
Shocking video shows several of the suspects calmly walking down the sidewalk.
Then, the video shows the suspects running towards Ward seemingly fleeing in the bike lane near a crosswalk.
The suspects eventually catch up to him, whose face is blurred, and can be seen kicking and beating him
While he escaped serious injury, Ward did get slashed in the torso, head and hand.
Other people run towards the fray, though it’s unclear if they are trying to diffuse the situation or join in the beating.
A different surveillance camera also appears to show the victim stripped of his clothes by the end of the video.
Pictured: Two of the suspects in the beating caught on surveillance video
Pictured: One of the suspects in the beating caught on surveillance video
‘They crushed that dude,’ Relley told the Daily News.
‘That’s what he gets. This is America. You can’t be robbing little people on the bus.’
Police sources describe Ward as being affiliated with the Mac Baller Brims gang, the New York Post reports. The group was once designated as one of the most dangerous gangs in New York City.
Several passengers on the Chinatown bus backed up claims that the man beaten by a mob of people was no victim — and recalled a nightmarish ride where the malicious ex-con and his crew ‘took over the whole bus.’
Robbery victim Jahi Nimmons, 20, and three others — Tiffany Nimmons, 36, Tyriek Nimmons, 32, and Tymanthan Richardson, 27 — turned themselves in Friday morning at the 5th Precinct in Manhattan.
Nimmons turned himself in on Friday morning at the 5th Precinct as did Tiffany Nimmons, 36, Tyriek Nimmons, 32, and Tymanthan Richardson, 27 – and all may be charged with robbery and gang assault.
There is no indication whether or not Ward will face any charges.
Pictured: One of the suspects in the beating caught on surveillance video
Ward has 43 arrests on his record and has served a three-year stint at Fishkill Correctional Facility in Upstate New York on a robbery conviction. He was released in 2017.
Sources familiar with the victim shared that as recently as January 5, he was shot in the leg outside his Brownsville home.
Police are looking for a group of suspects after a shocking attack in the Chinatown ars to show the victim stripped of his clothes by the end of the video.
There were around 14 suspects involved in the attack in total.
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