One of the victims of the sucker punching incident that occurred on Thursday night at the world’s most famous arena claims that the suspect and his friend were the ones who started the fight.
Authorities identified James Anastasio, 29, of Staten Island as the man seen in a viral video initiating an unjustified attack on a Lightning fan after the team’s playoff loss.
The 37-year-old victim who attempted to intercede after the original punch told the New York Post that it’s ‘laughable’ to say that Anastasio is also a victim.
The Good Samaritan said he was leaving a luxury room when he observed Anastasio and a friend trying to create fights with anyone wearing a Tampa jersey ‘long before the incident happened.’
The man shown in the video strolling ahead of Anastasio with a t-shirt in his pocket, according to the victim, was a ‘instigator.’
He claimed that the individual who was injured by the sucker punch was also struck by a beer can. According to the other victim, that man ‘did nothing wrong.’
‘What you saw on the video is exactly how they acted for five minutes straight up until that time,’ he continued. I’m sure they were wild the entire time, based on what I saw. This was something I had planned ahead of time in my mind.’
When asked about Anastasio’s lawyer, Jason Goldman’s, assertions that the suspect tried to alleviate the situation, the second victim laughed it off.
‘We anticipate Garden surveillance will confirm the actions immediately preceding the short, viral video caught on mobile camera,’ Goldman added. James attempted to defuse and deescalate the situation, despite being vastly outnumbered and eventually intimidated by a group of inebriated persons.’
‘While he is impatient for the rest of his story to be exposed, he also trusts and respects the Court process,’ the suspect’s counsel continued. We are convinced that once all of the facts are revealed, James will be vindicated.’
Anastasio was released on supervised release after pleading not guilty in Manhattan Criminal Court on Friday night. ‘I’m good,’ Anastasio told a reporter on Saturday, according to the Post. ‘I’m fine.’
While his father, James Anastasio, told the Washington Post that his son “didn’t know what occurred.” Perhaps you should phone the other person and inquire about it. What are your thoughts on this? ‘Perhaps you might inquire as to what he said to compel someone to perform such a thing?’
Following his arrest, Anastasio informed detectives that he was afraid of becoming viral after being captured on camera, stating, “Oh f**k, this may be on the internet.”
He was detained late Thursday night and appeared in court for the first time, dressed in the same red Rangers jersey and grey sweatpants as the night before.
On June 29, Anastasio will return to court.
It’s unknown what triggered the Anastasio’s outburst. After the Lightning defeated the Rangers, video shows the two heading along the concourse of Madison Square Garden.
The Lightning fan appeared to be taunting the opposing crowd with a chant. When Anastasio turned around and attacked him, he was going out of the venue with a friend.
As dozens of worried fans encircled the victim, he fled the scene. ‘He’s dead,’ one can be heard saying in the footage.
The victim, according to a tweet from Center Ice Hockey, is Alex, a devoted Tampa Bay supporter.
Steve Griggs, the team’s CEO, has contacted Alex and offered to give him a “bunch of playoff gear.”
‘We were just trying to get out of there like everyone else,’ the brother told NBC, ‘and then all of a sudden, a drink was thrown at us, and me and my brother kind of separated at that second.’
‘The next thing I know, I look over and hear a thump on the ground, and there’s my brother on the ground.’
‘There was a thud. It’s audible in the video. That sound will never leave my head. The skull of my sibling collided with the ground.’
After regaining consciousness, the sufferer was denied medical attention. On Friday morning, he and his brother went back to Florida.
Alex was disoriented after being hit, according to Corey Brill, a witness. ‘I was like, ‘I don’t know who you are, but I feel I need to tell you, you need to press charges, you were just assaulted,” Brill said.
Last night, Anastasio’s father told The New York Post that he couldn’t defend his son’s behavior.
‘Choices we make in our life can have unintended repercussions. Nothing needs to be defended. It’s just the way it is. We’ll wait for him to return home, pick him up, and everything will be OK. It’s a fresh day tomorrow.’
The suspect lives on Salamander Court in the Charleston section of Staten Island.
According to NBC New York, the suspect’s landlord stated that Anastasio “didn’t appear violent” and that the footage astonished him. Someone must have ‘p****d off’ the suspect, the landlord added in a separate interview with the Post.
‘We are in the very early phases of gathering and discovering all the facts,’ Anastasio’s attorney Jason Goldman said in a statement to DailyMail.com.
‘For the time being, we want to make sure James is returned to his family in a timely manner, and then we’ll focus on defending him in court,’ he continued.
The Garden’s management said in a statement on Friday that the ‘assailant’ would be barred from the stadium for life, but did not name Anastasio.
‘Last night, at the conclusion of the game, a horrific assault occurred against a Tampa Bay supporter — followed by a second assault against an individual who heroically intervened,’ according to the statement.
‘All guests should feel comfortable and valued in The Garden, regardless of which side they support,’ the venue wrote.
The Garden’s administration stated that the assaulted fan had received medical attention and will continue to receive help from the Garden’s guest services team.The Lightning defeated the Rangers 3-1 in Game 5 of the NHL Eastern Conference finals on Thursday.
After a New York turnover, Ondrej Palat’s tip-in broke the game with 1:50 left in regulation.
With a 2-1 win over the Rangers on Saturday night, Tampa Bay clinched their third consecutive trip to the Stanley Cup final.
The Lightning were 6-1 at home in the playoffs, while the Rangers are 2-7 on the road and are in their sixth elimination game.
At Thursday’s game, tensions were clearly running high on the ice, which culminated in a confrontation between players after the final horn.
After Lightning star Nikita Kucherov flung a meaningless shot off Rangers defenseman Adam Fox, players on both sides dropped their gloves.
Fox, who was coming off his third straight loss and was now facing elimination in Game 6 on Saturday, was enraged and retaliated by slashing the Russian-born winger.
Kucherov was understandably enraged, and many melees erupted around the rink at the same time.
The main event featured former first-overall selection picks Steven Stamkos of the Lightning and Alexis Lafreniere of the Rangers.
The incident at Madison Square Garden occurred at a time when violence in New York City is at an all-time high. When compared to the same period last year, overall crime is up about 40% in 2022.
Except for murder and shootings, every violent crime is on the rise in New York, with felony assault up 19 percent, burglary up 32 percent, and robbery up 39 percent.
Random attacks are also on the rise in New York City. On May 25, a 61-year-old Brooklyn man was slain while walking home when he was sucker punched by an attacker.
Victor Vega is seen walking beside two males before the incident in a video obtained by the NYPD. He is shown collapsing on his back after getting punched in the face.
One of the two assailants is seen searching through Vega’s pockets, extracting something suspicious, and passing it to his companion.
The two are then seen walking away nonchalantly while Vega lies motionless in the street.
His death was considered a homicide, and police are still looking for the two suspects.